USA vs Venezuela

The kidnapping
Sources: CIA concluded that Maduro loyalists should lead Venezuela

In a secret intelligence report, the CIA recently concluded that Maduro loyalists, such as Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, would be best suited to lead the country in the president's absence. This is according to sources for the Wall Street Journal.

The CIA reportedly judged that it would be best for the short-term stability of the country. Trump and other high-ranking figures in the administration are said to have been given the report at some point in recent weeks.

The report is said to have influenced Trump's decision to support Rodríguez as interim leader instead of opposition member and Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado, according to the sources.

Earlier on Monday, the Washington Post reported, citing two sources in the White House, that Machado's acceptance of the peace prize - which Trump himself wants - was said to have been seen as the "ultimate sin" by the president and contributed to his unwillingness to see her lead the country. 

Votes on
Analysis: Trump dusts off 19th century doctrine

Donald Trump has breathed new life into the 19th century Monroe Doctrine, with his view of the US as the dominant power in the Western Hemisphere. The attack on Venezuela and the threats to Greenland can be understood within the framework of the “Donroe Doctrine”, according to several columnists.

The Wall Street Journal’s Greg Ip is one of those who sees traces of James Monroe in Donald Trump’s worldview. He sees a president who is driven above all else by trade and access to raw materials.

“Since World War II, the US strategy has been to keep Russia and China in check, neutralize rogue states and build alliances”, writes Ip and continues:

“The Donroe Doctrine returns to the pre-war approach, where smaller countries were expected to submit to the great powers”.

The Financial Times’ Gideon Rachman also problematizes the development. He interprets Trump’s vision as a world divided into spheres of interest around great powers.

“The idea that spheres of interest create stability may seem plausible. But it ignores the interests of smaller countries—countries that are considered too insignificant to determine their own fate,” he writes.

Rachman notes that Ukraine is an example of how “smaller countries” can fight back.

Bloomberg’s John Authers believes that this is an extraordinary development.

“And it is almost the exact opposite of what Americans thought they were voting for when they elected a staun