María Corina Machado won this year’s Nobel Peace Prize for her tireless fight to restore freedom in Venezuela and defeat the authoritarian regime of Nicolás Maduro. International observers say her party, the Venezuelan Democratic Movement, won last year’s elections overwhelmingly, yet Maduro has clung to power. Here Machado, her nation’s “Iron Lady,” writes from hiding to argue why the dictator must go — and why President Trump deserves thanks for his intervention.
A criminal cartel has taken over my country, and its reach now extends into the United States.
Anyone who believes this is “just another authoritarian regime” is dangerously mistaken.
This is organized crime in power, armed and bankrolled by America’s enemies.
Across the hemisphere, narco-terrorist groups and the dictators who shield them are clawing for more control.
They don’t just threaten their own nations.
They weaken democracies, poison our societies and target the United States directly.
Nowhere is this clearer than in Venezuela.
My country was once the most prosperous in Latin America: rich in oil, gas, rare earth minerals, agriculture and unmatched biodiversity.
‘Hijacked’ nation
We were also a proud, stable democracy that welcomed millions fleeing war and misery.
All of that was shattered when the Cartel de los Soles hijacked the state nearly 27 years ago.
Its bosses — Nicolás Maduro and his inner circle — stand accused of crimes against humanity and other grave atrocities.
They govern the country the way mobsters control territory: through fear, torture and the systematic destruction of the nation’s democratic pillars.
They sold our sovereignty to foreign partners: Castro’s Cuba, Colombian guerrillas, Iran, Russia — and took billions in financing from China.
They silenced the press, expropriated property, persecuted opponents and built an electoral fraud machine designed to keep them in power forever.
They weaponized migration and forced one in three Venezuelans to flee their homeland.
And from the beginning, they viewed the United States not as a distant power but as their primary target.
Since they cannot confront America militarily, they attack it asymmetrically: smuggling narcotics into US neighborhoods, spreading disinformation to divide Americans, paying lobbyists to warp US policy, backing hostile regimes and unleashing criminal groups like Tren de Aragua across the region.
They have also ceded Venezuelan territory to terrorist organizations and Iran’s operatives, giving US adversaries a safe haven just hours from American shores.
This network is already destabilizing cities and democracies throughout Latin America, and its reach is expanding north.
President Donald Trump understands this threat for what it is.
Decisive action
He has acted decisively by cutting off the cartel’s financial lifelines, strengthening the US presence in the Caribbean, and applying intense pressure on Maduro and his inner circle to move Venezuela toward the transition its people mandated.
These measures defend the interests of both our nations.
There are claims that decisive action could create instability or spark migration.
But the instability has already happened, and the migration has already occurred.
Nearly 9 million Venezuelans have fled our country, an exodus larger than Syria’s or Ukraine’s.
This catastrophe is the direct result of a war Nicolás Maduro declared against his own people.
The goal now is clear: to end that war and allow Venezuelans to return home once and for all.
Others warn that Venezuela could become “another Iraq or Libya” if the cartel falls.
That comparison collapses when you consider the most important fact: the Venezuelan people themselves.
We are a united society, without tribal or sectarian fractures.
We are a peaceful, modern nation with a long democratic culture and deep historic ties to the United States.
Our identity was built on institutions, civic life and an open, outward-looking spirit — the exact opposite of the criminal structure that has hijacked our state.
In July 2024, despite every obstacle the cartel imposed, Venezuelans defeated Maduro at the polls by 67% to 30%.
That victory was documented through technology, civic organization and overwhelming evidence.
The majority of our military and police forces support that democratic mandate.
The Venezuelan people have already ordered a transition of power.
Legit government waits
The truth is simple: Venezuela already has a legitimate government chosen by its people.
The only thing standing between Venezuelans and freedom is a narco-terrorist syndicate clinging to stolen power.
That is why the Trump administration’s measures do not push Venezuela toward chaos.
They move us toward the future Venezuelans voted for, and toward a safer, more stable hemisphere.
Our interests move in the same direction: a win-win for both nations.
A free Venezuela will transform our country from a criminal hub into the energy powerhouse of the Americas, a strategic ally in dismantling narco-terrorist networks, and an extraordinary frontier for US investment in energy, infrastructure, technology and agriculture.
And the moment freedom arrives, hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans will begin returning home, relieving pressure across the region and restoring dignity to our families.
A free Venezuela strengthens America, protects the hemisphere and makes all of us safer, stronger and more prosperous.
Venezuelans have already done the impossible.
Now we must finish what we began — together.
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