January 5, 2026

The January 5 issue of daily Akahata featured an article by Sugawara Hiraku, the paper’s foreign news editor, in which he condemned the United States for kidnapping Venezuelan President Maduro and his wife. The following is an excerpt from the article:

The U.S. military on January 3 kidnapped Venezuelan President Maduro and his wife, taking them to the United States after carrying out a large-scale strike in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela. U.S. President Trump explained that Maduro, the alleged kingpin of drug-smuggling rings who causes immense harm to the American people, will be tried in U.S. courts. However, such a unilateral use of force against another country is in violation of international law, as it constitutes an act of aggression that tramples upon the UN Charter.

Article 2, Paragraph 4 of the UN Charter stipulates, “All Members shall refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state.”

The use of force in self-defense is permitted as an exception when attacked by another country. However, in this case, there is no evidence that Venezuela attacked the United States.

The Venezuelan government has repeatedly denied the U.S. assertion that the Maduro regime colludes with or is integrated with drug cartels. Even if Maduro were the mastermind of a drug cartel, the United States would have no authority to use military force unilaterally to arrest him in his home country.

The Trump administration in its National Security Strategy (NSS) in December 2025 claims the Western Hemisphere as a U.S. “sphere of influence” once again and in a repackaged Monroe Doctrine. Based on the 19th-century Monroe Doctrine, the United States has repeatedly employed “gunboat diplomacy” in Latin American countries, threatening governments uncooperative with U.S. interests. It has repeatedly engaged in regime change operations and interference by using military force and conducting CIA covert operations.

At a press conference on January 3, President Trump referred to the Monroe Doctrine, emphasizing, “American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again.” He stated that the United States will “run” Venezuela until “a safe, proper and judicious transition” to new leadership can be made. He also indicated that he could use the military in order to make sure that Venezuela is “run properly,” and called for the recovery of U.S. access to oil rights in Venezuela.

Trump’s policy of “running” Venezuela represents the 21st-century version of the Monroe Doctrine and can be seen as a declaration of a new form of colonial domination, placing another country under U.S. control for U.S. interests.