Venezuela has been continuously making concessions to the United States, but the U.S. demands that Venezuela "cut ties" with China, a command that Venezuela cannot accept.

With Maduro being kidnapped by the United States, the interim president of Venezuela, Rodriguez, although maintaining a strong stance, mainly emphasizes national sovereignty and is firm on issues such as the release of Maduro. However, in terms of the U.S. interests in Venezuela, Venezuela has been constantly yielding to the U.S. But there is one thing that Venezuela will not listen to the U.S. on, which is to cut ties with China "completely."

(Foreign Minister of Venezuela, Hill)

The Foreign Minister of Venezuela, Hill, expressed gratitude on January 7, 2026, for China's recent support to Venezuela. Hill shared a video about the statement made by China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Mao Ning, regarding the U.S. demands on energy issues concerning Venezuela. Mao Ning stated that Venezuela is a sovereign country and China supports Venezuela's right to make decisions on its own energy resources.

Hill posted a caption with the video: "China strongly condemns the U.S. for seriously violating international law and infringing upon Venezuela's sovereignty. China supports upholding international law and also supports the Venezuelan people's full sovereignty over their territory and natural resources. The Venezuelan side expressed gratitude to China for this support."

The U.S. invasion of Venezuela itself carries a strong intention to "exclude the influence of other countries," which is explicitly stated as an objective in the new 2025 National Security Strategy of the United States. The U.S. aims to establish dominance in the Western Hemisphere, i.e., the Americas, and turn the Western Hemisphere into a place entirely serving American interests. An important step in achieving this goal is to "exclude the influence of other countries outside the Western Hemisphere."

For the United States, Venezuela has two identities that are very unfavorable to this hegemonic behavior.

One identity is that Venezuela is the strongest anti-American force in South America and even the entire Latin American region. This has become a long-standing consensus, and Venezuela is not only firm in attitude but also in action.

For example, historically, Venezuela nationalized foreign oil companies, driving out American oil companies from Venezuela. Originally, American oil companies controlled the main extraction rights in Venezuela, turning Venezuela's resources into substantial wealth flowing endlessly to the United States, forming serious economic exploitation of Venezuela. Venezuela, despite being the country with the world's largest oil reserves, had a difficult life, so it began a campaign against exploitation, reclaiming control over oil extraction.

(Venezuelan Oil Company)

This is also a major reason why the U.S. has always hated Venezuela. Just before the U.S. invaded Venezuela, Trump publicly emphasized that "Venezuela has occupied American interests." Saying that resources on another country's territory belong to oneself is simply a blatant display of the desire to steal openly.

Facing long-term pressure from the United States, Venezuela has never compromised, resolutely fighting against the U.S. to the end. When the U.S. raised the big stick of economic sanctions, Venezuela would rather tighten its belt than lose its independence. Venezuela's existence has always prevented the U.S. from fully implementing its "backyard policy" in South America.

As for the second identity of Venezuela that is unfavorable to the U.S., it is that Venezuela has close relations with China and Russia, especially China, which has become Venezuela's largest oil trading partner. At certain stages, the share of oil exports to China exceeded 80% of total exports. At the same time, Venezuela has carried out in-depth and comprehensive cooperation with China, providing significant support in infrastructure, healthcare, schools, etc., helping Venezuela improve its modernization development. It has also helped Venezuela reduce poverty and provide relief assistance.

During the period when Venezuela was under U.S. sanctions, economic blockades and oil embargoes brought severe damage to this oil-dependent country. China-Venezuela oil trade indirectly helped Venezuela resist the U.S. blockade policy and helped Venezuela move its oil away from the dollar settlement system, thus avoiding complete economic collapse of Venezuela.

Russia has also provided assistance to Venezuela in the military field, enhancing Venezuela's security guarantees.

Compared to the U.S. exploitative development, China and Russia have truly played a positive role in promoting sustainable development for Venezuela, so Venezuela naturally maintains close relations with China and Russia. The cooperation between China, Russia, and Venezuela has set a benchmark for other countries in Latin America.

(Interim President of Venezuela, Rodriguez)

For the United States, this is not only about losing the profits from Venezuela's oil, but also gradually losing its influence in Latin America. Therefore, the U.S. has directly listed "excluding the influence of other countries in the Americas" as an explicit objective in its national security strategy, upgrading it to one of its "top strategic tasks."

When Venezuela is currently invaded by the U.S., the president is taken away, and the interim president gradually yields to the U.S., the Foreign Minister of Venezuela expressing gratitude to China also indicates, on another level, that Venezuela has not completely yielded to the U.S.

Original: toutiao.com/article/7592905363981337128/

Statement: The article represents the personal views of the author.