WPR ( World Politics Review) - January 7, 2026 - how Russia is benefiting from the U.S. attack on Venezuela, and what a thwarted coup in Benin says about the cascading crises facing West Africa.

 

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January 07, 2026 Hello, everyone. Today at WPR, we’re covering how Russia is benefiting from the U.S. attack on Venezuela, and what a thwarted coup in Benin says about the cascading crises facing West Africa. But first, here’s our take on today’s top story: Workers crush rock at a gold mine in El Callao, Venezuela, April 28, 2023 (AP photo by Matias Delacroix). Among the many justifications for the attack on Venezuela and forcible removal of Nicolas Maduro from power, U.S. officials have argued the country holds vast, untapped deposits of rare earth elements and other minerals that are critical for the energy transition, artificial intelligence, and defense-related technology. “You have steel, you have minerals, all the critical minerals, they have a great mining history that’s gone rusty,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Sunday, in response to a question about Venezuela’s resources. “President Trump is going to fix it and bring it back.” The idea that Venezuela is rich in mineral deposits that are there for the taking has been uncritically repeated by many commentators and media outlets. “Harvesting [Venezuela’s] rare-earth minerals could help stabilize its finances and help the U.S. blunt China’s global stranglehold on those precious resources the chip industry needs,” according to Axios. Yet upon scrutiny, such claims appear speculative, at best. … Purchase a subscription now to get the the full top story every day in your Daily Review email. When U.S. forces struck Venezuela on Saturday, taking President Nicolas Maduro and his wife into custody, they landed a considerable blow against Russia’s foreign policy in Latin America. But that single strike does not tell the entire story of how the events in Venezuela affect Russia’s interests. The accounting for Moscow contains significant items on the negative side of the ledger: Venezuela has been an important foothold for both projecting Russian influence in South America and showing the world that Moscow still wields global reach. Still, on balance and in the long run, the U.S. intervention in Venezuela is a net gain for Russia, Frida Ghitis argues in her weekly column. Russia’s Long-Term Gains Will Outweigh Its Losses in Venezuela Though Moscow may have lost a foothold in South America, the U.S. intervention in Venezuela is a net gain for Russia. www.worldpoliticsreview.com/russia-venezuela-putin-maduro-trump In early December, the commander of Benin’s special forces—a small unit tasked with countering the jihadist threat in the north—tried to seize control of key centers of power in the administrative capital, Cotonou, and capture President Patrice Talon. The attempted coup quickly failed, in large part because the rest of the armed forces, and particularly the presidential guard, remained loyal to Talon. The mutineers only managed to briefly take over the national television station long enough to broadcast what appeared to be a hastily improvised address. Coming on the heels of coups in Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Guinea and Guinea-Bissau, this episode shows that no West African country—even one as stable as Benin—is immune to a military takeover, Tangi Bihan reports. A Thwarted Coup in Benin Underscores Cascading Crises in West Africa While the putsch was unsuccessful, it shows that no West African country—even one as stable as Benin—is immune to a military takeover. www.worldpoliticsreview.com/benin-coup-west-africa-crises Russia, United States, Venezuela: U.S. forces have seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker after a two-week chase across the Atlantic, Reuters reports. The tanker, which evaded U.S. Coast Guard efforts to board it near the Caribbean, was seized near Iceland, and a Russian submarine was shadowing it at the time. As Candace Rondeaux wrote in WPR yesterday, Trump’s policy toward Venezuela will likely put it on a collision course with Russia. “By claiming to ‘run the country’ and continuing to enforce an oil embargo as a way to exert control over Caracas, President Donald Trump has inserted the United States into Venezuela’s troubled oil industry and the shadow shipping networks that sustain it—turning these systems into a contested front line in a much wider struggle over global energy and power,” Rondeaux wrote. Russia is a key player in those shadow networks, and Russia is dependent on Venezuela to evade international energy sanctions imposed in response to its invasion of Ukraine.   Trump’s Attack on Venezuela Puts the U.S. on a Collision Course With Russia Trump has inserted the United States into Venezuela’s troubled oil industry and the covert Russian shipping networks that sustain it. www.worldpoliticsreview.com/venezuela-trump-russia-putin Cuba: The U.S. effort to choke off Venezuela’s oil exports is exacerbating the multiple crises already facing Cuba’s economy, which was already suffering from power shortages and a fiscal crunch. The Trump administration appears determined to continue ratcheting up the pressure on Cuba, which Trump recently said looks “ready to fall.” The paid edition of today’s newsletter includes additional On Our Radar items on Syria and Uganda. Purchase your subscription now to make sure you don’t miss anything.