Monday briefing: Why the US moved to oust Venezuela’s president

In today’s newsletter: Saturday’s capture of Nicolás Maduro by the US was as unexpected as it was swift – but what led Trump to topple the South American regime?Good morning. Over the weekend, the US attacked Venezuela with a series of airstrikes and captured the country’s leader, Nicolás Maduro, along with his wife, Cilia Flores, seizing them from their bedrooms and flying them to New York on Saturday evening. Donald Trump announced that the US would “run” Venezuela for an unspecified period.Perhaps most striking was how explicit Trump was about the reasoning behind the military action. He said the aim was for US companies to take control of Venezuela’s oil infrastructure for their own benefit. “We have the greatest oil companies in the world, the biggest, the greatest, and we’re going to be very much involved in it,” Trump said.Venezuela | The prospect of the United States seizing direct control of Venezuela appeared to recede on Sunday after the shocking seizure of President Nicolás Maduro – but US officials said Washington was keeping a 15,000-strong force in the Caribbean and might make a fresh military intervention if Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, did not accommodate their demands.EU | Keir Starmer has said closer ties with the EU single market are preferable to a customs union in his clearest sign yet that the UK government is seeking to further deepen links with Brussels.Weather | Transport delays, treacherous driving conditions and school closures will greet many people as they return to work and study after the Christmas break, with winter weather warnings in place across the UK.Crans-Montana fire | Investigators have identified the last 16 people who died in the New Year’s Eve bar fire at the Swiss mountain resort of Crans-Montana, police said on Sunday.Germany | German leftwing militants protesting over the climate crisis and AI have claimed responsibility for an arson attack that cut power to tens of thousands of households in Berlin. Continue reading...