Venezuelan opposition torn between enthusiasm and caution after US strikes

In general, Venezuelan opposition groups within Venezuela have viewed the U.S. military operation against the country — which ended with the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro — with enthusiasm. But there has also been caution. U.S. President Donald Trump’s reservations about the role opposition leader María Corina Machado would play in a transition to democracy have heightened the feeling within the democratic camp that she is not fully guiding the ongoing political process.

Machado issued a statement upon learning of Maduro’s arrest, in which she sought to assume responsibility for the events and expressed her support for Friday’s military operation. The opposition leader, who has spent months cultivating the goodwill of the U.S. government, conveys a sense that her predictions have come true. In the statement, titled “The Hour of Freedom Has Arrived,” the Venezuelan Nobel Peace Prize laureate says: “Nicolás Maduro from today will face international justice for the atrocious crimes committed against Venezuelans and against citizens of many other nations. Given his refusal to accept a negotiated solution, the United States government has fulfilled its promise to enforce the law. [...] This is the hour of the citizens. Those of us who risked everything for democracy on June 28th. Those of us who elected Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia as the legitimate president of Venezuela, who must immediately assume his constitutional mandate and be recognized as commander-in-chief of the National Armed Forces.”

Upon learning of Maduro’s arrest, González Urrutia stated on his X account: “Venezuelans, these are decisive hours, know that we are ready for the great operation to rebuild our nation.”

The few politicians still in Venezuela were caught in an atmosphere of uncertainty that spread through the streets after the military strike. Some, closest to government interests, openly condemned the U.S. attack. Those who went into hiding remained silent. Exiled figures — such as Leopoldo López — expressed joy and shared the news as a victory.

Trump’s unpredictable behavior, along with his unilateral and unorthodox approach to the Venezuelan crisis, has fueled frustration in multiple directions.

Trump — who, curiously, rarely or never mentions Machado directly when speaking about Venezuela — stated at a press conference shortly after Maduro’s capture that U.S. military forces would need to ensure a transition to democracy and restore oil production “for the country.” But when asked about María Corina Machado’s role, he said: “I think it would be very tough for her to be the leader. She doesn’t have the support within or the respect within the country.”

Trump had made similar remarks shortly before the press conference, in an interview with the conservative U.S. network Fox News. When asked whether, once the Maduro regime was overthrown, Machado would be in charge of leading the transition to democracy in her country, Trump responded: “Well, we’re going to have to look at it right now.”

The new National Assembly, Venezuela’s parliament, is scheduled to take office on January 5. It was elected without the participation of the major opposition parties and amid widespread abstention. A small bloc of opposition parties, some 14 deputies in total — the most well-known being Henrique Capriles — will have to face the Chavista regime in a complex and restrictive environment, shaped by U.S. military aggression.

At this moment, regarding the crisis with the United States, there is no room in Venezuela for alternative analyses or dissenting views — such as those reflecting on sovereignty, respect for popular will, or openly holding Chavismo accountable. Nor can there be calls to exploit the circumstances for personal gain.

Any reflection that attempts to qualify the international sanctions against the country, or that justifies the current state of affairs in Venezuela, can be immediately punishable by imprisonment.

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