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I think Americans should definitely be concerned about the state of Venezuela. Firstly, Venezuela is less than fifthteen-hundred miles away from Florida, and its close proximity could be a problem when it comes to things like immigration. In 2017, over one-hundred and eighty-five thousand Venezuelans applied for US asylum. (Rendon, para. 5, 2017)

There are also concerns about narcotrafficking and drug trafficking in general, as many Venezuelan government officials are tied to drug rings and illegal cocaine exports, which have increased severely. Seeing as the US is ranked first in the world for cocaine usage, this is definitely not a good sign for the US, health-wise. If the crisis continues, we could have a health crisis underway for the US as well. (Rendon, para. 7, 2017)

It also stated by Rendon that China considers Venezuela a strategic location, and whether or not that means based on its resources or its proximity to the United States is left unclear. This could pose issues for national security. (Rendon, para. 8, 2017)

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I'm of the belief that the United States should resolve this conflict immediately. As stated previously, countries like China, Russia, and Iran, all of which are enemies with the US, have helped the Venezuelan government evade U.S. sanctions and have built up oil and uranium deals with them. Iran has assisted Venezuela in finding uranium reserves/deposits under the guise of developing nuclear power. (Reuters, 2009) Despite this, Iran has a history of attacking US forces in places like Iraq, which makes them a potential threat if they were to get their hands on stronger weapons; atom bombs, for example. (BBC, 2019)

Russia has also sent troops to Venezuela on planes capable of carrying nuclear weapons. Venezuelan officials have also denied aid from the US. (Reuters, 2019)

Considering the severity of US sanctions under former President Trump's administration, which contributed to a 38% fall in Venezuelan oil exports (Buitrago et al., para. 13, 2021), I think the best solution would be to lift or lighten the sanctions to some degree while securing a good partnership with Venezuela. This will allow us to coordinate with them, limit the number of exports to our enemies, and possibly allow us to offer more aid to the country as a whole. I firmly believe that it is the responsibility of the United States and other countries as a whole to negotiate peace over all other things. If Venezuela wishes to remain a socialist government, an ideal which I am against, it should be free to do so in my eyes. It is only when they step out of line and become hostile that I believe that the US should intervene.

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According to Mr. Moises Rendon from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, "Many Venezuelan government officials are actively involved in international crime and are using state resources, including military assets or the state-controlled oil company, PDVSA, to support illicit activities such as money laundering and drug smuggling." (Rendon, para. 6, 2017)

Additionally, Rendon notes that Venezuelans have actively migrated to other South American countries like Colombia and the Dominican Republic, and those countries are beginning to take active measures to control the influx of migrants, which could lead to a possible refugee crisis that includes the US. Most importantly, in my eyes, Venezuela has built strong alliances with countries like China, Iran, and Russia, all of which are strong US opponents. In 2010, Hugo Chavez approved of a nuclear reactor plan with Russia, and because Venezuela has a lot of natural uranium and oil reserves, this could pose a threat to the US. (Rendon, para. 8, 2017)

Venezuela has also historically, despite its anti-American beliefs, been a reliable trade partner with the US regarding oil. (Rendon, para. 12, 2017)

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There is a humanitarian crisis occurring in Venezuela, a country lying in the northern part of South America. (Global Conflict Tracker)

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Note that Hugo Chavez came to power in Venezuela in 1998, and Maduro is currently still President as of 2021. It is also stated by multiple analysts that the economic contraction of Venezuela between 2013 and 2017 is worse than the US during the Great Depression, and Cuba and Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union. (Melimopoulos, para. 11, 2019)

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According to Aljazeera, "When Maduro took over as president after Hugo Chavez’s death in 2013, the oil-reliant economy was already in trouble. When global oil prices dropped in 2014, businesses were no longer able to import goods at the same rate as before, skyrocketing prices and inflation." (Melimopoulos, para. 10, 2019)

Hugo Chavez came to power in 1998, and Maduro still remains President this year in 2021. (Global Conflict Tracker)

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Venezuela has been plagued by government corruption and has a history of economic mismanagement. This has resulted in food and medicine shortages which have encouraged citizens to leave and migrate to other countries. As of February 22nd, 2019, little over 3.4 million Venezuelans have moved to countries and territories abroad. (UNHCR/IOM, 2019)