It goes without saying that Donald Trump’s regime change in Venezuela was reckless and unlawful. Yet condemning the vigilante intervention by the United States is almost beside the point. It has been done now, and it is possible that the oppressed and impoverished people of Venezuela will benefit.
What matters now is that the international community acts to help Venezuelans restore democracy and the rule of law. There is an alternative ruler of the country in the form of Maria Corina Machado, the opposition leader and winner of last year’s Nobel Peace Prize – but President Trump imperiously dismissed her claim, saying: “She doesn’t have the support inside the country or the respect.”
