On Jan. 3, the United States bombed Venezuela and captured president Nicolas Maduro as well as his wife Cillia Flores.

Maduro was captured and taken to the U.S. to be charged with nacro-terrorism, corruption, drug trafficking and other charges. While on paper this may seem like a good thing due to Maduro not being well liked by the Venezuelan people, it didn’t do much to help them, and it created more problems for the U.S. rather than solving them effectively.

One of the most concerning problems is the United States’ relations with its allies. The United Kingdom, Denmark, Columbia, Spain and many other major members of the United Nations have spoken out against what happened in Venezuela. This could cause possible problems for the United States due to it causing major disagreements between allies, who might be more hesitant to send the United States aid if they are ever threatened or in danger in the future.

Some people may be wondering why the United States decided to attack Venezuela in the first place. According to U.S. President Donald Trump, it’s because Venezuela was flooding the United States with drugs and gang members. In all honesty, this doesn’t seem to be a likely reason, the actual reason seems to be the amount of oil that is in Venezuela and how it could benefit the U.S. oil industry. President Trump claimed that Venezuela could supply the United States with 50 billion barrels of oil. This whole thing seems less like a plan to protect the United States, and more like an attempt to gain more control and resources. Even if the United States gets the resources they need from Venezuela, it still isn’t worth over 100 people losing their lives during the raids. 

The United States seems to be testing its limits recently with this attack on Venezuela, as Trump now wants to take control of Greenland. Denmark and other NATO nations are sending military reinforcements to Greenland in case the United States follows through with this. Every decision the current administration makes seems less and less like a way to help the American people, and more like a way to gain control and power over others. It’s extremely disappointing seeing the country that has always prided itself on freedom turn out like this.