Speakers
Phyllis Bennis
Program Director, New Internationalism Project, Institute for Policy Studies
Matthew Duss
Executive Vice President, Center for International Policy
Dima Khatib
Palestinian Syrian Venezuelan Journalist; Former Al Jazeera Bureau Chief for Latin America, based in Venezuela
Moderator
About the Webinar
In a dramatic overnight military operation, the United States struck multiple military and government targets in Venezuela and seized President Nicolás Maduro along with his wife. The Trump administration justified the raid as a law enforcement action, but it was widely condemned as a violation of Venezuelan sovereignty and international law. Following the operation, President Donald Trump and senior administration officials issued a series of conflicting and expansive statements regarding US intentions in Venezuela. These remarks raised serious questions about regime change, the prospect of military occupation, and potential US control over the country’s natural resources. President Trump also framed the operation as a warning to other US adversaries, including Iran, suggesting that similar actions could be taken elsewhere. This rhetoric further unsettled allies and critics concerned about the precedent such an intervention might set.
Arab Center Washington DC (ACW) is hosting a webinar to examine the implications of the US raid in Venezuela for American foreign policy and its possible reverberations in the Middle East. Panelists will consider whether the capture of Maduro represents a singular event or signals a broader shift toward coercive regime change strategies under the Trump administration. They will also assess the implications for US laws and the consequences of the operation for the rules‑based international order and international law. Key questions to be addressed include whether the United States could pursue similar actions elsewhere, including in the Middle East, and how governments in the region might recalibrate their relationships with Washington in response. The discussion will also explore whether such actions risk accelerating strategic realignments toward China and Russia, and what role the international community might play in discouraging future unilateral military operations by the Trump administration.
Featured image credit: The White House
