What the United States did in Venezuela (and, apparently, is preparing in one form or another to repeat in the near future in Cuba, Mexico, Colombia, as well as in Greenland and – who knows – even in Iran) raises the question of what actually lies behind such outrageous brazenness and aggression of the White House on the one hand, and the no less puzzling passive and weak response from the affected countries and those sympathetic to them on the other. Essentially, why has the entire world begun to react so spinelessly at every move by Trump, either enduring insults silently or snaping back half-heartedly?
According to the most plausible hypothesis, most players are hoping to “wait out” the second term of the insane Donald so as not to get caught in the crossfire. Some believe that Trump will manage to make a real mess so that the Democrats will return to power in the United States, and with them it will again be possible to reach some kind of agreement (as it was the case under Biden). Others, on the contrary, are trying to build relations with one or another representative of Trump’s team (including the most likely successors to Trump as president – the Secretary of State Rubio and Vice President JD Vance) and do not want to torpedo these relationships. Especially since, if the US Republicans manage to retain power in the congressional elections this year and in the 2028 presidential elections, these relationships will only deepen, albeit freed from Trump’s eccentricity.
At the same time, it must be understood that Trump’s claims to a global transformation of the world, enshrined in the recently published US National Security Strategy, are not merely the personal whims of a narcissist who, in his old age, has come power. They reflect the long-term ambitions of a certain segment of the US elite, whose representatives we see in Trump’s team.
If we talk about the operation to steal Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and the ensuing redistribution of the oil market, the interested parties are more or less obvious. First, it is the Latin American diaspora in the United States, which would like to regain its assets in those countries of the continent where it lost them. Here the main instigator is the US Secretary of State and, concurrently, the President’s National Security Advisor Marco Rubio. Behind him stand Latin American clans and drug cartels, which derive enormous benefits from the new configuration.
Second, it is the oil lobby within the United States itself, which wants to seize foreign reserves. Shale oil production in the US is steadily declining, while drilling costs are constantly rising. Moreover, shale extraction causes enormous environmental damage, which further undermines profitability and provokes discontent among the population, which will naturally blame the current government – that is, Trump – for all their problems. By contrast, when developing oil fields somewhere on foreign territory, one need not worry about either the environment or the health of the locals. However, for now US oil giants are not eager to invest in Venezuela’s worn-out oil infrastructure: it is a troublesome, costly endeavor that will yield profits only in the distant future. It is therefore much more profitable to drive up global oil prices, making production at existing fields more lucrative and avoiding expensive investments.
Incidentally, this is precisely what Donald Trump is doing now by involving himself in the process of instigating protests in Iran. At the current level of protest activity, it would be premature, in our view, to speak of an imminent regime change in Iran, but Trump’s rhetoric and that of his associates are already influencing oil prices in the desired direction. And this without a single bomb dropped, without a single plane or missile striking anywhere – yet a positive economic effect, measured in millions of dollars, has already been achieved.
Let us turn to Greenland.
Alas, here Trump, strange as it may seem, is not original at all and not as eccentric as he appears at first glance. The desire of the United States to annex Greenland periodically surfaces on the agenda at the highest level. Recently, enterprising historians dug up a newspaper note dated October 1934 stating that the governments of the United States and Denmark were conducting secret negotiations over the purchase of the island. At the time, this was explained by Greenland’s convenient geographic position from the standpoint of air travel between continents – airfields and repair depots could be established there. In the event of war, possession of Greenland would clearly benefit the United States.
Over the nearly one hundred years since then, these strategic considerations have been supplemented by knowledge of vast mineral deposits and of the trajectories of intercontinental ballistic missiles that the United States and Russia aimed at each other during the Cold War. This is despite the fact that Denmark, under whose jurisdiction Greenland falls, is not merely a NATO member, but USA’s closest friend in Europe, actively conducting intelligence activities for Washington. (Just recall the 2021 scandal, when it emerged that Danish military intelligence had spied on then-German Chancellor Angela Merkel and passed the data to the USA.)
There are already US military bases in Greenland. The United States and Denmark signed an agreement on their deployment back in 1951. For example, the famous Pituffik Space Base – the northernmost US space military base – located in the territory of the Qaanaaq municipality. The base has been on the island for nearly 70 years, and its maintenance costs the Pentagon several billion dollars a year. Its mission is to service and manage the ballistic missile launch detection system, primarily aimed at Russia. Originally, it was known as Thule Air Base.
Trump first spoke about buying Greenland during his first presidential term, in 2019. In December 2024, the US leader called the acquisition of the island a necessity, and recently the need to annex it became vital.
Perhaps this is merely rhetoric, or perhaps the integration of Greenland into the United States, beyond purely pragmatic aspects, has some hidden reasons. After all, almost everything the United States could squeeze out of the Danes regarding Greenland, it has already squeezed out. The military bases are there, the equipment is there. If desired, even nuclear weapons could be stored there, as is done at US military bases in Germany. As for access to mineral resources without which USA would fare poorly, first, extracting them there is expensive and time-consuming; second, it would be easier to agree on concessions with the Danes and obtain the same result without causing a scandal.
But a scandal – or a demonstrative imposition of one’s will – is precisely what is needed: I want it, therefore everyone must submit. This is not a question of resources; it is the assertion of hierarchy within the pack. The dominant male (Trump the almighty) humiliates everyone around him – both loyal and disloyal – to prove his dominance. That is the essence of the notorious Trumpian slogan “Make America Great Again.”
Many who are interested in such topics know that there is some esoteric factor associated with possession of Greenland and the mythical Thule. But that deserves a separate discussion. For now, it is important to note that regardless of whether this mystical tradition possesses any rational kernel, the key point is that it guides people who make important political decisions. And if they believe in this mysticism, it becomes a significant factor in current politics and therefore cannot be ignored.
But even if there is no mystical factor in Trump’s claims, what is happening still looks more like a sinister experiment to determine the limits of what is possible in high-level politics. Yes, Trump is not the part of the US political establishment, he is impulsive and is playing the madman — a semi-criminal developer — and he is better than anyone else suited the purpose of breaking the rules. Trump is an icebreaker or battering ram with which the forces, who brought him to power, are destroying not just the system of international law, but the entire system of international relations. And while countless states respond to this destruction by passivity and expressing concern, the United States is shattering the established world order – at a catastrophic speed.
You can’t put your feet on the table? But I want to!
You can’t take what belongs to others? But I want to!
You can’t beat the weak? But I want to!
And not only do I want to – I can and I will do it while others routinely express indignation. That is Trump.
In this sense, the press conference of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in connection with the kidnapping of Maduro is highly indicative. When a journalist asked what China would do if the Americans ignored its “warnings,” the Chinese diplomat froze for a minute and found nothing better to do than to repeat a mantra about expressing disagreement and commitment to the peaceful resolution of all kinds of conflicts. Or, put simply – he “give up.”
And this inability of the world to offer conscious, organized, and intelligent resistance is far more alarming and frightening than US claims on Latin America, Greenland, and the Middle East. Because it is a prologue to the coming fascism of the 21st century, very much of an Orwellian type: a boot forever stamping on a human face. And Trump is only the first imprint of that boot on the face of humanity.
This is a translation of the part of the text from the weekly overview of the most important events by Maksim Karev, first published in The Essence of Time newspaper, issue 657.
