01/05/2026
Regime Change Revisited: Venezuela and America’s Imperial Playbook.
The United States of America has a long history of toppling and reshaping governments around the world, a practice commonly referred to as regime change policy. This approach—implemented both covertly and overtly—dates back to the early 19th century.
In the latter half of the 19th century, U.S.-initiated regime change efforts were concentrated primarily in Latin America and the Southwest Pacific. By the early 20th century, the United States had shaped, influenced, or installed governments in numerous countries, including nearby territories and states such as Hawaii, Panama, Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic.
Following World War II, the U.S. emerged as a global power locked in a struggle with the Soviet Union for influence and security during the Cold War. Under the Truman administration, and driven by fears of the spread of communism, the United States expanded its interventions beyond its traditional sphere of influence in Central America and the Caribbean to other regions of the world.
In collaboration with Western allies—most notably the United Kingdom—the U.S. played a central role in the 1953 Iranian coup d’état, the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, and provided support for the overthrow of President Sukarno by General Suharto in Indonesia.
Beyond coups, the United States has also interfered directly in foreign elections, including Italy (1948), the Philippines (1953), Japan (1950s–1960s), Lebanon (1957), and Russia (1996). According to several studies, the U.S. conducted at least 81 known overt and covert interventions in foreign elections between 1946 and 2000.
Against this historical backdrop, the regime-change events unfolding in Venezuela, following the alleged kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife by U.S. forces and his transfer to New York, come as no surprise—particularly to the people of Latin America, often referred to as America’s backyard or traditional sphere of influence. The region has endured such interventions repeatedly.
From the Philippines, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Costa Rica, Panama, Bolivia, Argentina, Mexico, Nicaragua, Cuba, Honduras, Colombia, Guatemala, and Venezuela in Latin America; to Iran, Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and Palestine in the Middle East; and Libya, Congo, and Zaire in Africa—few regions have escaped the far-reaching arm of U.S. intervention. Europe and Asia have also been affected through direct wars, the financing of civil conflicts, political manipulation, and interference in domestic affairs. The so-called “color revolutions” stand as notable examples of such involvement.
While the U.S. government’s inclination toward regime change is widely recognized, its overt actions in Venezuela have raised significant concern. The apparent disregard for Venezuelan sovereignty and international legal norms has left a bitter impression. Some may interpret these actions as a demonstration of American power and reach. Others, however, argue that they reflect the desperation of a declining empire—one facing growing competition from peer powers such as China and Russia, one that has not decisively won a major war since World War II, and one steadily losing global influence and respect.
Today, the United States no longer wields the same ability to dictate the domestic affairs of countries such as Russia, Iran, China, Venezuela, Cuba, and Georgia. In what appears to be a final show of strength, America has exposed itself once again as an imperial and colonial power—a characterization increasingly rejected and despised in the modern world.
In opening this door, the United States may have opened a can of worms—and others are likely to follow.
