MEXICO CITY (AP) — In his celebratory news conference onthe U.S. capture of Venezuelan strongmanleader Nicolás Maduro,President Donald Trumpset out an extraordinarily forthright view of the use of U.S. power in Latin America that exposed political divisions from Mexico to Argentina asTrump-friendly leaders riseacross the region.
"American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again," Trump proclaimed just hours before Maduro wasperp-walked through the officesof the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration in New York.
The scene marked a stunning culmination of months of escalation in Washington's confrontation with Caracas that has reawakened memories of apast era of blatant U.S. interventionismin the region.
Since assuming office less than a year ago — and promptly renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America — Trump has launched boatstrikes against alleged drug traffickersin the Caribbean,ordered a naval blockadeon Venezuelan oil exports and meddled in elections inHondurasandArgentina.
Through a combination oftariffs, sanctions andmilitary force, he has pressured Latin American leaders to advance his administration's goals ofcombating drug trafficking,halting immigration, securingstrategic natural resourcesand countering the influence of Russia and China.
The new, aggressive foreign policy — which Trumpnow callsthe "Donroe Doctrine," in reference to 19th-century PresidentJames Monroe's beliefthat the U.S. should dominate its sphere of influence — has carved the hemisphere into allies and foes.
"The Trump administration in multiple different ways has been trying to reshape Latin American politics," said Gimena Sanchez, Andes director for the Washington Office on Latin America, a think tank. "They're showing their teeth in the whole region."
Reactions to US raid put regional divisions on display
Saturday's dramatic events — including Trump's vow thatWashington would "run" Venezuelaand seize control of its oil sector — galvanized opposite sides of the polarized continent.
Argentine PresidentJavier Milei,Trump's ideological soulmate, characterized one side as supporting "democracy, the defense of life, freedom and property."
"On the other side," he added, "are those accomplices of a narco-terrorist and bloody dictatorship that has been a cancer for our region."
Other right-wing leaders in South America similarly seized on Maduro's ouster to declare their ideological affinity with Trump.
In Ecuador,conservative President Daniel Noboaissued a stern warning for all followers ofHugo Chávez, Maduro's mentor and the founder of the Bolivarian revolution: "Your structure will completely collapse across the entire continent."
In Chile, where a presidentialelection last monthmarked byfears over Venezuelan immigrationbrought down the leftist government, far-right President-elect José Antonio Kast hailed the U.S. raid as "great news for the region."
But left-wing presidents in Latin America — includingBrazil's Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva,Mexico's Claudia Sheinbaum,Chile's Gabriel Boricand Colombia'sGustavo Petro— expressed grave concerns over what they saw as U.S. bullying.
Lula said the raid set "an extremely dangerous precedent." Sheinbaum warned it "jeopardizes regional stability." Boric said it "violated an essential pillar of international law." Petro called it "aggression against the sovereignty of Venezuela and of Latin America."
Trump haspreviously punishedorthreatenedall four leaders for failing to fall in line with his demands, whileboostingandbailing out allieswho show loyalty.
The attack recalls a painful history of US intervention
For Lula — among the last surviving icons of theso-called "pink tide,"the leftist leaders who dominated Latin American politics from the turn of the 21st century — Trump's military action in Venezuela "recalls the worst moments of interference in the politics of Latin America."
Those moments range from American troops occupying Central American and Caribbean nations to promote the interests ofU.S. companies like Chiquitain the early 1900s to Washingtonsupporting repressive military dictatorshipsin Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay to fend off Soviet influence in the 1970s.
The historical echoesin Maduro's downfall fueled not only harsh condemnations andstreet protestsamong Trump's left-wing opponents but also uneasy responses from some of his close allies.
Usually effusive in his support for Trump,President Nayib Bukelewas oddly quiet in El Salvador, a nation still scarred by a brutal civil war between a repressive U.S.-allied government and leftist guerillas. He posted a meme mocking Maduro after his capture Saturday, but expressed none of the jubilation seen from regional counterparts.
In Bolivia, whereold anti-American dogmasdie hard due to memories of the bloody U.S.-backed war on drugs, new conservativePresident Rodrigo Pazpraised Maduro's removal insomuch as it fulfilled "the true popular will" of Venezuelans who tried to vote the autocrat out of office in a 2024election widely seen as fraudulent.
"Bolivia reaffirms that the way out for Venezuela is to respect the vote," Paz said.
His message didn't age well. Hours later, Trump announced he would work withMaduro's loyalistvice president, Delcy Rodríguez, rather than the opposition thatprevailed in the 2024 election.
"The Trump administration, it appears at this point, is making decisions about the democratic future of Venezuela without referring back to the democratic result," said Kevin Whitaker, former deputy chief of mission for the State Department in Caracas.
When asked Sunday about when Venezuela will hold democratic elections, Trump responded: "I think we're looking more at getting it fixed."
As the right rises, Trump puts enemies on notice
The Trump administration's attack on Venezuela extends its broader crusade to assemble a column of allied — or at least acquiescent — governments in Latin America, sailing with the political winds blowing in much of the region.
Recent presidential elections fromChiletoHondurashaveelevatedtough, Trump-like leaders who oppose immigration, prioritize security and promise a return to better, bygone eras free of globalization and "wokeness."
"The president is going to be looking for allied and partner nations in the hemisphere who share his kind of broader ideological affinity," said Alexander Gray, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, a Washington research institute.
Those who don't share that ideology were put on notice this weekend. Trump said Cuba's Communist government "looks like it's ready to fall." He slammed Sheinbaum'sfailure to root out Mexican cartels, saying that "something's going to have to be done with Mexico." He repeated allegations that Petro "likes making cocaine" and warned that "he's not going to be doing it very long."
"We're in the business of having countries around us that are viable and successful, where the oil is allowed to really come out," he told reporters Sunday on Air Force One. "It's our hemisphere."
DeBre reported from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Associated Press writers Maria Verza in Mexico City and Darlene Superville aboard Air Force One contributed to this report.
