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Following months of military action against Venezuela and the surrounding area in the Caribbean, the U.S. seized Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and unsealed an indictment against him.
The details: The indictment charges Maduro, along with his wife, his son, two high-ranking Venezuelan officials, and an alleged leader of the gang Tren de Aragua, with narco-terrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine.
- It states that Maduro and his allies have worked for decades with major drug trafficking groups to move large quantities of cocaine to the U.S.
- There is evidence that Maduro has benefited from the drug trade to stay in power, using profits from drug trafficking to secure the loyalty of military officials and party leaders.
- Maduro and his wife have pleaded not guilty.
But:
- The Trump administration has justified the attacks against Venezuela by saying the U.S. was in an armed conflict with drug cartels and that the campaign is targeting drugs killing Americans. But most U.S. overdoses involve fentanyl, which does not come from South America.
- Experts have said Venezuela is not a major drug producer and have described it as a minor cocaine transit country, with most of the cocaine flowing through Venezuela heading to Europe, not the U.S. The majority of the cocaine bound for the U.S. is believed to move through the Pacific, not the Caribbean. The indictment states that Venezuela was shipping 200-250 metric tons of cocaine a year by around 2020, representing about 10-13% of the global cocaine trade, with other countries playing a much larger role.
The bigger picture: To address the addiction and overdose crises, a public health approach focused on prevention and treatment is needed.
Read more: The U.S. Indictment of Maduro Cites Cocaine Smuggling. Venezuela’s Role in the Trade Is Believed to Be Modest.; Maduro, wife plead not guilty as ousted Venezuelan leader says he was ‘kidnapped’
Published
January 2026