MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
The U.S. operation in Venezuela marks an extraordinary moment in the history of Latin America. One of the more recent parallels would be Panama, a smaller, less powerful country. In 1989, U.S. troops invaded and captured that country's leader, Manuel Noriega. This American operation may well have repercussions far from Venezuela. And for more on that, we're going to bring in NPR's Eyder Peralta. He's been tracking international reaction from his base in Mexico City. Hey, Eyder.
EYDER PERALTA, BYLINE: Hey, Mary Louise.
KELLY: Is the U.S. finding much support for this operation in the region?
PERALTA: It found a little support. The presidents of Ecuador and Argentina, both big Trump supporters, applauded the move. Javier Milei of Argentina said, quote, "liberty advances." But the operation has received a lot of condemnation. Colombia's president said his country rejected what he called the aggression against the sovereignty of Venezuela and Latin America. Brazil issued the strongest statement against the U.S. operation. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said this operation crossed an unacceptable line and that this was, quote, "another extremely dangerous precedent for the entire international community." The president of Chile, Gabriel Boric, echoed the statement. Today, it's Venezuela, he said. Tomorrow, it can be anyone. Russia and China, the big geopolitical players, also condemned the operation, but it's worth noting that neither of those nations are saying if they will do anything to directly support the Venezuelan government.
KELLY: What about where you are, Eyder, in Mexico? What's the reaction there?
PERALTA: Well, look, President Trump came into office his second term threatening to bomb Mexico, and that was before he moved on to Venezuela. Today, in an interview with Fox News, he hinted at it again. He said that Mexico is run by drug cartels, and he said, quote, "something is going to have to be done with Mexico." Mexico's foreign ministry condemned today's strikes on Venezuela, saying they violated the U.N. Charter. And President Claudia Sheinbaum was asked about Trump's comments, and she said that he has said those things before.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
PRESIDENT CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM: (Speaking Spanish).
PERALTA: "Mexico continues to have a good relationship with the U.S." And she dismissed any potential U.S. military action, saying Mexico has a good relationship with the U.S. and they've held talks. And then she repeated what has become her mantra for the past year.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
SHEINBAUM: (Speaking Spanish).
PERALTA: "Collaboration, coordination," she said, "but not subordination."
KELLY: I want to bring in one more country that has a lot to lose or a lot to gain, depending on how things go in Venezuela, and that is Cuba. And I raise it in part because in the press conference from Mar-a-Lago, President Trump hinted at U.S. action involving Cuba. What do we know?
PERALTA: Well, President Miguel Diaz-Canel said - demanded urgent action from the international community. Cuba right now is in the middle of a historic economic crisis. It's already struggling to keep the lights on because it doesn't have enough diesel. I was there a couple of weeks ago, and the government was already worried that Venezuela could get hit and stop sending oil to Cuba. Today, Trump issued a thinly veiled threat. He said Cuba was similar to Venezuela. He said Cuba was, quote, "something we'll end up talking about." And, Mary Louise, you know, a year ago, as Trump came back into office, I was talking to a Cuban diplomat and I brought up the prospect of U.S. military interventions in Latin America, and he told me that kind of thing doesn't happen anymore, he said.
KELLY: (Laughter).
PERALTA: This is a new world.
KELLY: Famous last words, yeah.
PERALTA: Famous last words. And today, I think we can say this is a new world. The United States has not only launched military strikes on Venezuela, but it has captured its leader, and President Trump is now saying the U.S. will run Venezuela. I think this tells you that anything is possible in this new world, and all of those threats from President Trump have now taken on new meaning.
KELLY: NPR's Eyder Peralta, reporting from his base in Mexico City. Thank you.
PERALTA: Thank you, Mary Louise.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
