As Trump rewrites the rules in Venezuela, NZ faces a foreign policy reckoning
The Conversation••nation
Key Points:
- Donald Trump’s attempted regime change in Venezuela, involving a US military operation to capture President Nicolás Maduro, reveals the limitations of New Zealand’s current foreign policy alignment with the United States under the National-led coalition government.
- The intervention, justified by Trump as a move to control Venezuela’s vast oil reserves, violates both US federal law—since Congress was not properly briefed—and international law, as it constitutes interference in a sovereign state without a threat to international peace.
- New Zealand’s initial diplomatic response, calling for adherence to international law, is seen as insufficient given the gravity of the situation and the precedent it sets for similar unilateral actions by great powers.
- The Trump administration’s disregard for multilateralism and international norms challenges New Zealand’s traditional support
