Military Power Can't Guarantee Peace

Recent world politics has been demonstrating a series of events which show that world leaders, particularly one to say the least, Donald Trump, have been inflicting a series of autocratic decisions that question the core values of democracy that the United States of America stands for.

On Saturday, 3rd January 2026, President Trump was all over the global media announcing that US forces had conducted a “large-scale strike” against Venezuela and captured its President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores. The couple is now indicted in New York on charges related to terrorism and drugs. Trump has accused Maduro of running a “narco-terrorist organisation”. Who gave him the right to abduct a sitting President in the latter’s country? Isn’t that a criminal action? Where are the international laws? 

Autocratic practice 

The oil-rich capacity of Venezuela and the implications of Trump’s attack on the country, especially as Russia is not bending to Trump’s pressure, have not gone unnoticed, and voices are being raised against the autocratic and undemocratic practices induced by Trump in the name of restoring peace from within Venezuela and globally. The main strategy of Trump for winning his second term in office was his pledge to establish peace by ending global conflicts. He has been casting himself as the president of peace who deserves the Nobel Peace Prize. According to several media reports, he claims to have ended eight wars so far across the world. 

However, as an observer of Trump’s activities around the world, he has, in fact, attacked at least seven countries so far in his second term in office. His attack on Venezuela, abducting Maduro and his wife, has been seen as a demonstration of power. The escalating administration of military attacks around the globe during Trump’s second term contradicts his claims of being a president of peace.

According to Al Jazeera, which quoted Armed Conflict Location & Event Data, a non-partisan conflict monitor, the US had carried out, or been a partner to, 622 overseas bombings in total using drones or aircraft since 20 January 2025, when Trump took office for the second time. Apart from the latest strike on Venezuela, some of the countries that have faced US attacks since Trump came to power for the second time include Nigeria, Somalia, Iran and Syria, among others. He now claims to carry out similar attacks on Cuba, Colombia and other countries.

There has been a series of questions raised in the international community against Trump’s latest strike of removing a publicly elected president from his country. Rather than restoring global peace, this is being seen as a demonstration of power to control everyone who does not abide by the rules that he puts down. There has also been a series of tariff hikes that have affected global trade and transit, especially against countries that Trump feels are going against his rule book. Therefore, this is definitely not restoring peace but pushing the global scenario more and more into conflict and instability.

There have to be steps taken to address narco-terrorism, but is this the way to do so? Many people within Venezuela and across the world say that this is definitely not the way to do so. President Trump has been a champion of attracting public attention since the day he took office till today. His strategy seems to be more about capturing the minds of US citizens and global citizens to keep himself constantly in their thoughts. He has managed to create a feeling of fear around the world and portray the USA as the most powerful country on earth. But is this a way of reinstating peace, stability and democracy?

 Trump can be seen as the US President who is trying to establish a norm that he is omnipresent. The New York Times reviewed to analyse the first 329 days of Trump’s second term in office. It shows that there were more than 250 media appearances, more than 320 official appearances, and more than 5,000 social posts or reposts. The analysis shows that while Trump has lagged behind his predecessors in the number of official appearances, he has managed to ensure that he has enforced methodologies to place himself in public consciousness on a daily, and at times hourly, basis.

In fact, his attention-seeking and capturing of not only US citizens’ attention but global attention began from the moment he was inaugurated, with a series of executive orders that affected not only his country but global economic, financial and health sectors, among other aspects. After the abduction of Maduro, the President of Venezuela, President Trump has mentioned that his team, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, were working with Venezuelans and that the US would take control of the beleaguered nation. He has been quoted by the BBC as saying, “We are going to run the country until we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.”

Voice against Trumpism 

The question here is, what does he mean by “run the country”? After Maduro’s abduction by the US Army, the Supreme Court of Venezuela directed Vice President Rodríguez to immediately assume the post of Acting President. She has now been sworn into that position and stated during her swearing-in ceremony, “I come with pain for the kidnapping of two heroes that we have as hostages in the United States of North America,” referring to President Maduro and his wife.

The time has come for global citizens, especially the people of the USA, to raise their voices against leaders like Trump who use the armed forces to exert force on any country he feels appropriate. Afghanistan is an example of how a country was invaded by Allied forces; however, instead of the country moving ahead democratically, it is now under the Taliban regime, where people, especially girls’ and women’s human rights, have been completely wiped out. The recent developments across the world seem to be against international laws and human rights declarations. It is time now for global citizens, especially the youth, to come together and raise their voices to end Trumpism across the world and truly move towards restoring peace.

(Sharma is a senior journalist and women rights advocate namrata1964@yahoo.com X handle: @NamrataSharmaP)