Nicolas Maduro was arrested a few hours after taking this photo with Xi Jinping's special envoy who visited Caracas. [Photo=X]

The dictatorship of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela has collapsed due to a surprise military operation by the U.S. This is more than just a regime change. 

It is the greatest geopolitical undertaking of the 21st century, severing the 'chain of injustice' that shook the 2020 U.S. presidential election and burning the 'red flag' of the Chinese Communist Party that had advanced to the doorstep of the United States.

Many remember Maduro simply as an incompetent dictator who ruined his country with oil. However, President Trump's perspective was different. To him, Venezuela was a breeding ground of crime that violated American democracy and an advanced base for Chinese hegemony. 

Venezuela: The Homeland of Smartmatic and Dominion

This operation is a meticulously calculated revenge and a clean sweep for the future. Trump never forgot 2020. At the center of the allegations of electronic vote manipulation that swept across the United States at the time were systems called 'Smartmatic and Dominion.' 

And the birthplace of those systems was Venezuela. During his lifetime, Chávez wanted a system that would never lose an election. That desire gave birth to the monster that is Smartmatic. 

This system has been suspected of being designed to allow 'invisible hands' to intervene in the process of converting voter intentions into digital data. 

Maduro inherited this system, extended his power through numerous fraudulent elections, and this 'technology of dictatorship' crossed borders and was exported to the United States.

This was the primary reason President Trump militarily struck the Maduro regime. To physically eliminate the base where the 'source code' of election fraud was hidden. 

Just as one must raid a hacker's server room to catch a hacker, Venezuela was eliminated as the 'host' to uproot the manipulative system that threatened American democracy. This also means that decisive smoking gun evidence has been secured for future reforms of the U.S. election system and subsequent legal proceedings.

Blocking the Chinese Communist Party's 'Infiltration Route into the Americas'

The second key reason is the Chinese Communist Party. Xi Jinping had made Latin America a crucial base to break through the U.S. encirclement as part of his Belt and Road Initiative. Venezuela was at the center of this. 

China provided tens of billions of dollars in loans to the Maduro regime. In return, it acquired Venezuela's oil development rights at a low price and seized control of port and telecommunications infrastructure. Venezuela had virtually become an economic colony of China and served as a Chinese military and intelligence base targeting the U.S. mainland. 

The only lifeline that allowed the Maduro regime to endure persistently amidst international sanctions was China's cash, collateralized by Venezuelan oil. 

President Trump's operation is a fatal blow to Xi Jinping's chest. With the collapse of the Maduro regime, the astronomical funds China had poured in turned into scraps of paper. 

More importantly, it has been proven that the 'Chinese backing' that leftist dictatorships in South America relied on proved powerless against American military force. 

This is a strong warning to the pro-China bloc that has spread throughout South America, beyond Venezuela to Brazil and Chile. "If you do not lower the Chinese flag in America's backyard, you will be next." 

The Maduro Regime: A 'Giant Drug Cartel'

The third reason is drugs. The Maduro regime itself was a giant drug cartel. In collusion with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, it produced cocaine and distributed it to the United States via Mexico, generating enormous slush funds. This 'dirty money' flowed back into supporting anti-American terrorists and financing fraudulent elections.

President Trump had vowed to strike at the source of drug supply along with building a border wall. The removal of Maduro was a multi-purpose move to block a major supply route for drugs that are sickening American society, while simultaneously cutting off the financial lifeline of global criminal organizations linked to it. 

In the 1980s, President Ronald Reagan defined the Soviet Union as the "evil empire" and, based on strong power, led the Cold War to victory through a policy of pressure. 

Today, in 2026, President Trump has designated the Chinese Communist Party and its minions as the "axis of evil" of the 21st century and taken action. The Venezuela operation is merely the prelude. 

At this turning point in history, what should we observe? This structure, where Maduro's fraudulent election system and China's funds are intertwined, doesn't it seem familiar somewhere? It bears a chilling resemblance to the suspicions surrounding the Korean political scene, particularly Lee Jae-myung and the Democratic Party. 

The South Korean election management system, the lack of transparency in the National Election Commission, and allegations of Chinese cyber-comment manipulation. Venezuela's tragedy is not just a story about another country. Maduro's downfall is a signal that the global network that shared its techniques of injustice has begun to collapse. 

President Trump has shown it through his actions. That he will not compromise with injustice, dictatorship, and communist totalitarianism. Now, South Korea's conservatives must also define a clear path. Those who take opportunistic stances while watching China's reactions have no place to stand. Look at Maduro's end. See the fate of someone who challenged American democracy and, leaning on China, trampled on his own citizens. 

The Republic of Korea, a free nation, must actively participate in President Trump's 'neoliberal alliance.' We hope the cleansing wind that began in Venezuela will cross the Pacific and sweep away corrupt forces in the Korean Peninsula as well.

Editorial Department, Hankook Daily