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China moves into Venezuela as Maduro regime gets Beijing lifeline amid US tensions
Venezuela’s Maduro accuses US of starting ‘eternal war’
Manhattan Institute fellow Daniel Di Martino, who faces losing his Venezuelan citizenship, discusses Nicolás Maduro’s plan to target opposition activists and President Donald Trump’s denial that he is considering strikes within the country.
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As President Donald Trump warns of “zero tolerance” for narco-states in America’s backyard, China is tightening its grip on Venezuela — a high-risk economic and political bet that could soon collide with U.S. power.
U.S. defense officials confirmed to Reuters last month that a U.S. aircraft carrier strike group had entered the Southern Command region, which covers the Caribbean and the northern coast of South America, to monitor narcotrafficking routes linked to Venezuela’s military leadership.
The Pentagon said the arrival of USS Gerald R. Ford, carrying more than 4,000 sailors and dozens of tactical aircraft, would “bolster US capacity to detect, monitor, and disrupt illicit actors and activities.” It added that the mission aims to “degrade and dismantle transnational criminal organizations.”
CHINA CONDEMNS US MILITARY BUILDUP OFF VENEZUELA COAST AS FOREIGN INTERFERENCE IN REGIONAL AFFAIRS
China’s President Xi Jinping (R) waves next to Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro during a visit to a housing development in Caracas July 21, 2014. China will provide Venezuela with a $4 billion credit line under an agreement signed on Monday, with the money to be repaid by oil shipments from OPEC member Venezuela. The deal was inked during a 24-hour visit to Venezuela by Xi, who is on a tour of Latin America. (Carlos Garcia Rawlins/ Reuters)
Within weeks, Venezuelan officers were reportedly training for guerrilla-style defense against a possible U.S. strike — an acknowledgment, according to Reuters, of “rising anxiety inside Caracas.”
Into this standoff, Beijing unveiled a “zero-tariff” trade agreement with Caracas at the Shanghai Expo 2025, announced by Deputy Minister for Foreign Trade Coromoto Godoy. Venezuelan officials said the accord covers roughly 400 tariff categories, removing duties on Chinese and Venezuelan goods.
While final implementation details remain pending verification, the goal is clear: Beijing is moving fast into a sanctioned economy that Washington has sought to isolate.
“This really looks like China is going to completely take over the Venezuelan economy,” said Gordon Chang, an expert on China’s global trade strategy. “It’s going to decimate Venezuela’s local industry.”
“Venezuela basically sells petroleum to China and very little else,” he said. “China, of course, is a manufacturer of many, many items. Venezuelan manufacturing is not going to experience a renaissance anytime soon — it’s going the opposite direction.”
VENEZUELA MOBILIZES TROOPS, WEAPONS IN RESPONSE TO US WARSHIP BUILDUP IN CARIBBEAN
Sailors aboard the world’s largest aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), launch a Carrier Air Wing 8 F/A-18E Super Hornet attached to Strike Fighter Squadron 31 from the flight deck, Sept. 26, 2025. (Mariano Lopez)
Chang added that Maduro’s sudden embrace of Beijing stems from fear of Trump’s next move.
“Maduro probably doesn’t have a choice,” he said. “He realizes he’s got a problem in the form of Donald J. Trump. There’s a U.S. aircraft carrier not far from his shores, and a lot of military assets bearing down on him. He needs a friend, and he’s desperate.”
“For Maduro, the zero-tariff pact may offer temporary relief — but it only deepens dependence,” Chang added. “I don’t see this trade deal as strengthening Venezuela. I see it strengthening China’s stranglehold over Venezuela.”
US MILITARY BUILDUP IN CARIBBEAN SEES BOMBERS, MARINES AND WARSHIPS CONVERGE NEAR VENEZUELA
From Beijing’s perspective, the tariff-free pact opens a commercial and strategic doorway into the Western Hemisphere just as Washington doubles down on sanctions.
The Council on Foreign Relations estimates that China has extended around $60 billion in loans to Venezuela over the past two decades, much of it repaid through oil shipments — a figure still cited by both Chinese and Venezuelan officials in 2025.
Members of the Bolivarian National Militia patrol on a street in the 23 de Enero neighborhood during a military exercise, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 23, 2025. (Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/Reuters)
“China has leveraged multibillion-dollar loans and the establishment of satellite positioning and surveillance facilities to secure strategic control over Venezuela’s natural resources and critical infrastructure,” said Isaias Medina III, an Edward Mason Fellow at Harvard University and a former Venezuelan diplomat to the U.N. Security Council.
Medina was referring to the El Sombrero satellite ground station in Venezuela’s Guárico province — a joint China-Venezuela project that Western analysts, including a recent Associated Press report, describe as part of a wider space cooperation network giving Beijing an intelligence foothold in Latin America.
US BOLSTERS MILITARY PRESENCE IN CARIBBEAN NEAR VENEZUELA AMID TRUMP’S EFFORTS TO HALT DRUG TRAFFICKING
Medina said the new pact must be understood as one layer in a wider anti-Western alignment.
“Under the banner of so-called ‘21st Century Socialism,’ initiated by Hugo Chávez and expanded by Nicolás Maduro, the nation has evolved into a forward operating base for regimes openly hostile to the United States and its allies,” he said.
“Iran, Russia, China, and Cuba have entrenched themselves across Venezuelan territory, using the country as a platform for asymmetric warfare, intelligence operations, and ideological expansion throughout Latin America.”
President Nicolas Maduro stands in front of a portrait of Venezuela’s late President Hugo Chavez. (AP Photo/Miraflores Press Office, File)
He noted that “Russia’s military footprint includes more than $12 billion in arms sales and ongoing defense cooperation and Wagner Group presence in military exercises,” while Cuban military advisers remain embedded inside Venezuelan security institutions.
“Iran has exploited this environment to embed terrorist proxies such as Hezbollah and Hamas, using Venezuela as both a financial hub and a logistical corridor. These activities extend to former training camps in Syria, where Venezuelan operatives and mercenaries have been indoctrinated in hybrid warfare tactics,” he added. “Iranian interest includes potential drone manufacturing and uranium mining.”
“The Maduro government, shielded by the absence of the rule of law or legitimate governance, has replaced statecraft with criminal enterprise,” Medina said. “Grand corruption is not the exception; it is the system.”
Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro has yet to publicly comment on the strike. (Ariana Cubillos/AP Photo)
“The humanitarian toll is catastrophic,” he added. “Over 30% of Venezuela’s population has been forcibly displaced. Starvation has been weaponized as a tool of social control, amounting to a war crime under international law. Despite the enormity of these crimes, many United Nations member states continue to recognize and engage with this illegitimate regime, thereby perpetuating its impunity. The failure to confront this crisis decisively enables a coalition of adversaries, state and non-state actors alike, to project power dangerously close to U.S. territory.”
For now, Washington’s sanctions campaign still constrains Venezuela’s oil lifelines. In March 2025, Reuters reported that U.S. threats to impose tariffs on nations buying Venezuelan crude caused a temporary disruption in shipments to China. Beijing dismissed the measures as “illegal extraterritorial actions” and vowed to continue cooperation — but has not disclosed how it will enforce the new tariff-free pact.
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The Maduro administration is seeking to rally government supporters amidst a sagging economy and refugee crisis. (Jesus Vargas/AP Photo)
Chang said the underlying reality hasn’t changed: China can’t protect Caracas from U.S. hard power.
“It can certainly launch a propaganda blitz,” he said, “but it can’t project military force in the region. It’s really up to what President Trump does. China does not have the military strength to oppose American intervention if that’s what Trump decides.”
Medina agreed that the stakes reach beyond economics. “Just three hours from U.S. shores, this narco-terrorist regime has become the operational convergence of organized crime, drug trafficking, money laundering, and human rights atrocities,” he said, urging a Western response combining “diplomatic isolation, targeted sanctions, and, when necessary, defensive deployments.”
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm has sued his parents for millions of dollars, accusing them of siphoning large amounts of his money into financial accounts they managed for him and then using some of the cash to pay their own expenses.
Bohm’s lawsuit, filed Wednesday in a Philadelphia court, comes after he began to review his personal and financial affairs in recent months, and said that his parents refused to give him access to the accounts or provide him with the information he sought about them.
They sought to “freeze” him out of four accounts — established as limited liability companies — and he now believes they “converted a sizeable amount” of his money from those accounts “to their own use,” the lawsuit said.
By the time he sought the information, his parents had already transferred millions of dollars from his personal accounts to the accounts they controlled, the lawsuit said.
Bohm’s parents, Daniel and Lisa Bohm, denied doing anything wrong and, through their lawyer, said they are “deeply saddened by the allegations” and will aggressively defend themselves. Alec Bohm has had full access to the accounts and his parents are paying his expenses on their personal credit cards, their lawyer, Robert Eckard, said in a statement.
“Mr. and Mrs. Bohm love their son very much and have always acted in his best interests, both personally and professionally, and still do so to this day,” Eckard said.
After Thursday’s 2026 season opening game, Bohm declined comment to reporters, saying “I’m not going to address any personal matters right now.”
Both parties say the first of the accounts was opened in 2019. His parents told him that they assigned themselves a 10% stake, strictly for administration purposes, and that Bohm was the “true” owner of all of the LLC’s assets, Bohm’s lawsuit said.
The accounts had various purposes, such as investing in securities or buying real estate. Bohm’s lawsuit also said they used money from The Alec Bohm Foundation to pay their expenses.
Bohm’s lawsuit asks his parents to pay at least $3 million in damages, hand over control of the accounts and hire an accountant to track every dollar they transferred from Bohm’s personal accounts to the accounts they controlled.
Bohm, 29, has a $10.2 million contract with the Phillies for the 2026 baseball season. The lawsuit said his parents live in a recreational vehicle and travel the country.
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in France on Friday to attend the G7 foreign ministers meeting where he will deliver a clear message on U.S. priorities for the ongoing war with Iran.
In the days leading up to the meeting, other members have taken markedly different approaches to the war. Nearly all of Washington’s partners — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan — have reacted cautiously to the U.S.-Israeli military campaign and declined to participate in offensive operations, even as they condemn Iranian actions.
Before departing on Thursday, Rubio signaled a defiant approach to the talks: “I don’t work for France or Germany or Japan… the people I’m interested in making happy are the people of the United States. I work for them,” he said in a video posted on X.
The divergence has drawn frustration from President Donald Trump, who has pressed allies to contribute more, particularly in securing key maritime routes such as the Strait of Hormuz. While some countries have signaled a willingness to support defensive or maritime security efforts, they have stopped short of joining direct military strikes.
TRUMP PRESSES NATO PARTNERS ON SUPPORT AS HEGSETH BLASTS HESITATION
“The U.S. is constantly asked to help in wars and we have. But when we had a need, it didn’t get positive responses from NATO. A couple leaders said that Iran was not Europe’s war. Well, Ukraine isn’t our war, yet we’ve contributed more to that fight than anyone,” Rubio added.
“The Strait of Hormuz could be open tomorrow if Iran stops threatening global shipping, which is an outrage and a violation of international law. For all these countries that care about international law, they should be doing something about it,” he said before boarding his plane to France.
The remarks set the tone for a summit already marked by growing friction between Washington and some of its closest allies over how to handle the Iran conflict. Rubio has framed the stakes in stark terms. “Iran has been at war with the United States for 47 years… Iran has been killing Americans and attacking Americans across this planet,” he said during a White House cabinet meeting, adding that allowing Tehran to obtain nuclear weapons would be “an unacceptable risk for the world.”
But even before Rubio arrived at the meeting, European officials were signaling a markedly different approach.
“We need to exit from the war, not escalate this further, because the consequences for everybody around the world are quite severe,” Vice President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas said during a briefing on the sidelines of the G7 on Thursday.
JACK KEANE CALLS OUT NATO’S WEAKNESS AS SHIPPING CRISIS GRIPS STRAIT OF HORMUZ
(L/R, clockwise) French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, US Secretary of Treasury Scott Bessent, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni meet during the Group of Seven (G7) Summit at the Pomeroy Kananaskis Mountain Lodge in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada on June 17, 2025 (LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images)
“It can only be a diplomatic solution… sit down and negotiate to have a way out,” she added.
The contrast between Rubio’s framing and Kallas’s message captures the core tension shaping the meeting.
U.S. officials say Rubio is heading into the talks with a broader agenda that goes beyond Iran.
According to a State Department spokesperson, who spoke to Fox News Digital on background, Rubio will use the meeting to “advance key U.S. interests” and push discussions on the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as “international burden sharing” and the overall effectiveness of the G7.
The U.S. is also expected to emphasize maritime security, including freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea, while urging allies to take on a greater share of responsibilities in conflict zones and international organizations, the spokesperson said.
RUBIO, RATCLIFFE TO DELIVER CLASSIFIED IRAN BRIEFING TO ‘GANG OF EIGHT’ AHEAD OF TRUMP’S STATE OF THE UNION
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to reporters before boarding a plane as he is headed to France where he will take part in the G7 foreign ministers’ meeting, at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, U.S., March 26, 2026. (Brendan Smialowski/Pool via Reuters)
European officials have instead emphasized the broader risks of the conflict.
France’s foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, said discussions at the G7 would build on a recent joint statement condemning Iran’s actions while also addressing maritime security concerns.
He said the “discussions will provide an opportunity to revisit positions already agreed at the G7 level… including the unjustifiable attacks carried out by Iran against Gulf countries… which we condemned in the strongest possible terms.”
Barrot added that ministers would also focus on securing global shipping routes.
A satellite image shows the Strait of Hormuz, a key maritime passage connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman, vital for global energy supply. (Amanda Macias/Fox News Digital)
“We will also have the opportunity to address maritime security and freedom of navigation… including an international mission… to ensure the smooth flow of maritime traffic in a strictly defensive posture, thereby helping to ease pressure on energy prices,” he said.
Kallas echoed that global framing. “All the countries in the world are one way or another affected by this war… it is in the interest of everybody that this war stops,” she said.
IRAN SIGNALS NUCLEAR PROGRESS IN GENEVA AS TRUMP CALLS FOR FULL DISMANTLEMENT
Kaja Kallas, High Representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy speaks to the press during EU Summit in Brussels, Belgium on Dec. 19, 2024. (Photo by Nicolas Landemard/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Her remarks also pointed to the interconnected nature of the crisis. “Russia is helping Iran with intelligence… and also supporting Iran now with drones,” she said, linking the Iran conflict to the war in Ukraine.
That uncertainty is already affecting the structure of the summit, with officials dropping plans for a unified final communiqué to avoid exposing divisions, Reuters reported.
Analysts say those differences reflect deeper structural tensions in the alliance. “Europe has criticized Donald Trump’s ‘maximum pressure’ strategy towards Iran while pursuing a failed diplomatic approach that has enabled the regime to expand its terrorist networks and edge closer to nuclear threshold status,” Barak Seener, senior research fellow at the Henry Jackson Society, told Fox News Digital.
“This reflects a lack of European capability to project power in the region, particularly in safeguarding the Strait of Hormuz.”
FILE PHOTO: Cargo ships in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. (REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo/File Photo)
Seener added that years of reliance on Washington have left Europe increasingly exposed as the U.S. shifts its strategic priorities. “Years of underinvestment in defense and reliance on the United States have created a dependency that Washington increasingly views as a betrayal of the peace it has guaranteed Europe since the Second World War,” he said.
“With the U.S. placing greater value on its relationship with Israel than NATO, the result may be further erosion of the alliance, reduced support for Ukraine and rising economic pressure on Europe.”
He warned that the immediate test will come at the G7 itself. “Divisions over how to respond to Iran and to any U.S. request for support are likely to expose a deeper transatlantic split,” Seener said.
“Operation Epic Fury has showcased President Trump’s ability to assemble a coalition of allies to eliminate a common threat — in this case the Iranian regime — and stabilize international trade,” Jacob Olidort, chief research officer and director of American security at the America First Policy Institute, told Fox News Digital.
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A satellite view shows the Strait of Hormuz, a key global energy chokepoint connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman, on Oct. 2, 2024. (Gallo Images/Orbital Horizon/Copernicus Sentinel Data via Getty Images)
“The failure of Western Europe to participate in securing the Strait of Hormuz is particularly egregious because those countries depend on it more than we do,” he added.
“At the same time, the historic successes of Operation Epic Fury have awakened a new confidence in our Middle East partners to eradicate the threats from the Iranian regime and to work together to shape a more peaceful and prosperous region.”
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On today’s show:
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Top story: G7 Summit debrief with Méabh Mc Mahon and Maia de la Baume.
Explainer by Jakub Janas: What’s the point of the G7 meeting?
Iran war update with Méabh Mc Mahon and Babak Kamiar.
Interview with Ghassan Salamé, Lebanese Culture Minister.
Interview with Valérie Hayer, Member of the European Parliament (Renew Europe, France).
When and where to watch Europe Today?
You can join Euronews’ chief anchor Méabh Mc Mahon and our EU editor Maria Tadeo live on TV and Euronews’ website and digital platforms every weekday.
Our new format brings you the day’s key events plus crucial analysis of all the stories shaping the EU and beyond. It’s also available as a newsletter and podcast.
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