2026 undoubtedly started with a spectacular show by the US in Venezuela; the question is, what is it a show of? Force, for sure. Planes, drones, and soldiers all invaded Venezuela in a meticulously planned operation that focused on abducting President Maduro and his wife to the US, to face drug charges. However, beyond force, this was also a demonstration of profound disregard for the world order and international law. Moreover, in the passing days, it has become clear that it is a show of disregard for the people of Venezuela. If there existed a flimsy excuse for removing the leader of another country by force, it was that Maduro was clearly not the legally elected president of Venezuela, as the last election was completely corrupted, and that the opposition leader, Edmundo Gonzalez, won by a wide margin. However, the Trump Administration has made it clear that it has no interest in helping him, or indeed 2025 Nobel Prize winner María Machado, take office.
Ultimately, it is a show of force for greed: for the energy resources of Venezuela.
This attack seems to reflect a brutal world of might is right, such as existed in the pre-Westphalian era. An emperor wants a resource, a territory, or obedience, and uses force to get it. Will this now be the case in other states in Latin America, or in Greenland? Will the world order survive this attack? Will NATO? To understand this better, Rachel Ellehuus, Director General of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), joins ELN Senior Associate Fellow Ilana Bet-El in a sober, deep and fascinating discussion on these and many other issues.
This episode was recorded on 8 January 2026
Chapters
- Inside NATO: what does a defence adviser actually do?
- Venezuela: what US intervention signals (and what it breaks)
- The US and the world: Middle East, Africa, Ukraine, and Russia
- Negotiating with states: diplomacy vs deal-making
- Are concerns over Greenland justified?
Mentions
Follow
- Rachel Ellehus
- Ilana Bet-El
- Instagram @women_leaders_podcast
Credits
- Production: Florence Ferrando
- Music: Let Good Times Roll, RA from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/ra/let-good-times-roll License code: ZXIIIJUU2ISPZIJT
The European Leadership Network itself as an institution holds no formal policy positions. The opinions articulated above represent the views of the authors rather than the European Leadership Network or its members. The ELN aims to encourage debates that will help develop Europe’s capacity to address the pressing foreign, defence, and security policy challenges of our time, to further its charitable purposes.
Image credit: Florence Ferrando
