Trump vs. Maduro: Is the Monroe doctrine back in LATAM?
- LatamSinFiltro
- Dec 10, 2025
- 8 min read
The past weeks, the media has mentioned the return to the Monroe Doctrine in Latin America due to the current tensions between President Donald Trump and Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, as well as the American bombing of Venezuelan ships in the Caribbean. In several press articles, journalists even mention a “Donroe Doctrine” (The New York Times, 2025).
Context
Situation in the Caribbean
Since September 2, 2025, the U.S. have deployed warships in the Caribbean, near the Venezuelan coast. The United States has already attacked several Venezuelan vessels suspected of carrying drugs. These actions are said to be part of the anti-drug operation that President Donald Trump wishes to conduct in the Caribbean.
Indeed, Trump accuses Venezuela and its president, Nicolas Maduro, of participating in drug trafficking activities in the region and says that Venezuela is responsible for the sale and consumption of drugs in the United States.
By now, more than 20 attacks were commanded by the United States on Venezuelan ships that the Trump administration claimed were carrying drugs. More than 80 people were killed. While the Trump administration maintains that these attacks are legal, international law experts argue that targeting civilians merely suspected of drug trafficking is indeed illegal. There is no clear evidence that the destroyed Venezuelan ships were carrying drugs.
Trump's accusations
Since then, the tension between Venezuela and the United States has been palpable. Trump is exerting strong pressure on the Maduro government, which he regularly threatens.
On November 15, 2025, the United States designated Maduro as public enemy number one and designated the Cartel of the Suns (Cartel de los Soles in Spanish) as a terrorist organization headed by president Maduro. In the past, Donald Trump had already accused him of being part of the Tren de Aragua cartel (the “Aragua train” in English).
What are the cartels of the Suns and Tren de Aragua?
The cartel of the Suns is an expression that emerged in the 1990s in Venezuela and which refers to high-ranking officers of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces involved in drug trafficking. The suns refer to the shape of the insignia worn by Venezuelan generals.
There are few, if any, studies and reports available that clearly demonstrate the existence of a genuine cartel, that is, an illicit organization. I have found no data in the academic literature concerning the existence of such an organization. I wouldn't say it doesn't exist, but I wouldn't say it does either.
Regarding the Tren de Aragua cartel, we know that this organization truly exists. It is a Venezuelan criminal network that currently operates throughout Latin America. Its main activities include human trafficking, drug trafficking, arms trafficking, and illegal mining.
If you have any document/book/study to recommend about the cartel of the suns, you are more than welcomed to share its name on the comments!
Flights to Venezuela suspended
On November 23, 2025, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) warned of the risks associated with flying over Venezuelan airspace due to increased military activity near the country. Since then, several airlines have suspended all flights to Venezuela: Iberia (Spain), Turkish Airlines (Turkey), Latam Airlines (Latin America), Avianca (Colombia), Gol (Brazil), and others.
At first glance, this announcement from the FAA makes us believe that the U.S might be considering attacking Venezuela in future…It is for sure a direct threat to the Latin American country.
However, no one really knows what President Trump's true intentions are and whether the pressure exerted is genuinely aimed at combating drug trafficking or whether it is an attempt to overthrow the power held by Nicolás Maduro. The United States does not recognize Maduro's government as legitimate and supports the opposition led by María Corina Machado. Obviously Trump defends the first option while Maduro publicly declared that all this was a plot led by the United States against him.
But do all these events reflect the return of the Monroe Doctrine in Latin America?
The Monroe doctrine: what is it?
The Monroe Doctrine refers to the speech delivered by U.S. President Joe Monroe before Congress on December 2, 1823, in which he expressed his vision of the role of the United States on the international stage. To understand the Monroe doctrine, we must look at the context:
The American War of Independence ended 40 years earlier, in 1783. The United States had therefore been independent for a very short time when Monroe delivered this speech and had little influence compared to European powers.
Most Latin American countries had obtained their independence from the Spanish Crown, and for some of them, the U.S participated in helping them achieve it.
Thus, the doctrine reflected the will of the founding fathers of the U.S (the "new world") to truly distance themselves from Europe, the "old world".
In his speech, Monroe explained that the United States would not intervene in European colonies on the American continent, but that it might intervene in the affairs of independent Latin American governments threatened or oppressed by a European power. The United States considered that any action by European powers that would infringe upon the independence of Latin American countries would be considered hostile behavior towards the United States.
Latin American countries and the U.S were part of the same "team" probably due to their geographical position, but also because they had all experienced European colonization. Almost all the American countries were independent by 1823, and the United States affirmed its desire to no longer be tied to Europe and to no longer let European countries interfere in American affairs (the American continent). The United States did not seek to replace the European powers in Latin America, but rather wished to become the ambassador of the new world and assert their moral opposition to colonialism (Colling, 1924).
The Monroe Doctrine therefore aimed to keep Europe out of American affairs and to protect the interests of the United States (Colling, 1924). We don't really know what protecting one's own interests means or what that actually entails.
However, in 1898, after Cuba obtained its independence from the Spanish Crown, the United States occupied the island until 1902, and even after the occupation, the US continued to influence Cuban politics. The same thing happened with Puerto Rico; the island was annexed by the United States in 1898 after the war against Spain. More than 70 years after Monroe's speech, the doctrine was no longer applied and the U.S had already adopted a more interventionist strategy.
The Roosevelt Corollary and the Big Stick policy
At first glance, Donald Trump's actions in the Caribbean and his attitude towards Maduro could be more closely related to the foreign policy pursued by the president Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909), that is to say the Roosevelt Corollary, an “extension” of the Monroe Doctrine.
In 1904, President Roosevelt presented an expansionist version of the Monroe Doctrine and transformed it into a true foreign policy. Just as Joe Monroe had declared in 1823, Roosevelt reaffirmed that the United States would consider any European military intervention in Latin America as a threat to the security of the United States.
The difference is that the United States now has the right to take preventive measures by intervening directly in any Latin American country in order to resolve any administrative or tax issues.
The context is completely different: at the beginning of the 20th century, the United States was then a world power aspiring to assert itself and impose itself on the international stage, the issue was no longer colonialism or keeping Europe out of its affair through friendly means.
From this new foreign policy stems the Big Stick policy. Latin America is no longer on the same team as the United States; it is now part of its sphere of influence. The United States is now superior to Latin American countries. It grants itself the right to exert pressure on the countries of the region to defend its own interests by imposing US hegemony.
Roosevelt sought to expand U.S territories, increase their economic influence with the dollar diplomacy for instance. To carry out this project, they may use means of pressure and intervene militarily in the region.
This is the beginning of American imperialism.
Roosevelt used the Monroe Doctrine to legitimize and justify his actions in Latin America, but in reality his foreign policy is quite different from what the original doctrine implied.
Donald Trump's actions
In light of what we have just said, it does not seem entirely accurate to claim that Donald Trump is reviving the Monroe Doctrine. 200 years later, the Monroe Doctrine became less applicable for various reasons:
Argument 1: The influence and economic weight of the United States is no longer the same. As for the countries of Latin America (with the exception of Puerto Rico), they are now fully sovereign nations. This is no more about colonialism.
Argument 2: Indeed, Trump's actions still aim to protect American interests, but here (according to President Trump's statements) it is about fighting drug trafficking, a problem that did not exist in 1823.
Argument 3: While Trump claimed not to want to interfere in European affairs during his first term and even at the beginning of his second, he is proactive in managing the conflict between Russia and Ukraine which goes against the Monroe doctrine.
Argument 4: When looking at Trump's strategy since the beginning of his second term, we find that he has exerted pressure on many countries, both Latin American and non-Latin American:
He raised the idea of taking control of Greenland, a strategic territory of Denmark.
He continued his trade war with China
It imposed tariffs on historical US allies: the European Union, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom…
He threatened Volodymyr Zelensky with reducing, or even suspending, financial support to Ukraine to fight against Russia.
He raised the idea of regaining control of the Panama Canal by force.
Since returning to the White House in 2025, Donald Trump appears to be much more active on the international stage. His actions and statements regarding Venezuela seem to be part of a different and broader foreign policy.
This is a new foreign policy, a new doctrine much more interventionist than the Monroe Doctrine, which was rather isolationist.
Donald Trump's actions are more offensive which we can associate to the foreign policy of Theodore Roosevelt or the one that pursued George H.W. Bush in the 1990s, based on the use of preventive measures in order to protect the interests and security of the United States.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments!
#LatinAmerica #LATAM #Trump #USA #US #Maduro #Venezuela #Drugs #Monroedoctrine #Foreignpolicy #Geopolitics
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