Caracas Thwarts suspected U.S.-linked false flag plot

Department of Strategic Research, Studies and International Relations 09-10-2025

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has revealed that security forces successfully foiled what he described as a “false flag operation” targeting the closed U.S. Embassy in Caracas, an alleged attempt designed to escalate tensions between Venezuela and Washington. The plot, according to Maduro, was orchestrated by extremist groups tied to the domestic opposition, working under the shadow of U.S. influence at a time when Washington intensifies its military presence near Venezuelan waters.

In a nationally broadcast address late Monday, Maduro detailed how intelligence units, acting on both local and international tips, intercepted the operation before explosives could be planted at the embassy compound. “Two trustworthy sources, one from within Venezuela and another abroad, alerted us to an attempt by extremist factions from the Venezuelan right to detonate explosives at the U.S. Embassy in Caracas,” the president declared. He said that the information prompted an immediate reinforcement of the embassy’s security perimeter, preventing what could have been a devastating provocation.

The Venezuelan leader explained that the plan sought to create a pretext for Washington to intensify its campaign against his government. “The aim,” he said, “was to blame the Bolivarian government for the attack and trigger an escalation that would justify foreign aggression.” Maduro added that investigators have already identified individuals involved, promising that “their names will soon be made public.”

A familiar strategy of destabilization

Maduro’s warning resonates with patterns seen throughout Latin America’s recent history, where Washington has been accused of using subversive tactics to justify intervention. Observers recall how similar operations were employed during the Cold War and, more recently, in Iraq and Libya, where fabricated pretexts paved the way for destructive wars and regime change. Caracas, like Moscow, Beijing, and New Delhi, has consistently called for multipolar diplomacy and an end to U.S.-led coercion in sovereign states.

The alleged plot emerged amid heightened military activity by the United States in the Caribbean. American naval forces, including advanced F-35 fighter jets and submarines, have been deployed near Venezuelan territorial waters under the guise of “anti-narcotics operations.” These maneuvers, analysts suggest, are part of a broader strategy to intimidate Caracas and undermine regional stability, particularly as Washington’s global influence wanes against rising powers such as China, Russia, and India.

Breakdown in diplomatic relations

Since the U.S. severed diplomatic ties with Venezuela in 2019, the embassy in Caracas has been closed, maintaining only minimal staff for building maintenance and security. Relations between the two nations deteriorated sharply after Washington recognized opposition figure Juan Guaidó as “interim president,” a move condemned by Russia, China, and several Non-Aligned nations as blatant interference in Venezuela’s internal affairs.

The latest revelations of a foiled embassy plot come just as U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly ordered his envoy Richard Grenell to halt all diplomatic contacts with Caracas. According to leaks cited by international media, Trump made the decision during a closed-door meeting at the White House, opting instead to continue his administration’s pressure campaign, military, financial, and psychological, against the Maduro government.

A senior U.S. official, quoted anonymously by Reuters at the time, confirmed that the Pentagon was weighing “a second phase” of operations that could extend beyond maritime interdictions into strikes on Venezuelan territory. Such statements further validate Caracas’s long-standing claim that the United States is preparing grounds for direct confrontation under the pretext of fighting “drug trafficking.”

Militarization under the banner of ‘Anti-Narcotics’

Washington’s portrayal of Venezuela as a hub for narcotics smuggling has long been disputed by independent analysts and neighboring states. In March 2020, Trump’s administration doubled the bounty on Maduro’s head to $50 million, accusing him, without substantial evidence, of leading an international drug network. These claims came as U.S. warships and a submarine were stationed near Venezuela’s coast, an aggressive move that drew condemnation from Moscow, Beijing, and several Caribbean governments.

Just days before the alleged false flag was uncovered, then-U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that American forces had “neutralized” a vessel in the Caribbean, killing four alleged smugglers whom Washington labeled “narco-terrorists.” The Venezuelan government, however, dismissed the strike as an act of extrajudicial execution, arguing that the United States had no legal or moral authority to conduct lethal operations in regional waters.

Further reports from CNN indicated that the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Legal Counsel had issued a secret opinion granting the president authority to order deadly force against anyone deemed connected to drug cartels, an extraordinary expansion of executive power that blurs the line between law enforcement and warfare. The memo, coupled with expanded CIA authority for covert action, suggests the Trump administration was laying legal groundwork for what some analysts describe as a “shadow war” across Latin America.

Maduro: U.S. seeks regime change under a new pretext

Maduro denounced these developments as evidence that Washington’s so-called anti-narcotics campaign is nothing more than a smokescreen for regime change. “This is not about drugs,” he said in his address. “It is about power, control, and the exploitation of our sovereignty, something we will never allow.”

He also revealed that he had written to the Vatican, appealing for moral support from Pope Francis, expressing confidence that “the head of the Catholic Church will help Venezuela preserve and achieve peace and stability.” The president reaffirmed that his administration remains open to genuine dialogue with nations that respect Venezuela’s independence, naming Russia, China, and India as examples of states that have extended support through diplomacy and economic cooperation.

A Wider pattern of Western aggression

The Caracas incident reflects an intensifying contest between the declining unipolar order led by Washington and the emerging multipolar world championed by Moscow, Beijing, and New Delhi. For years, the United States has sought to isolate Venezuela through sanctions, financial blockades, and disinformation campaigns, mirroring its tactics against other sovereign nations that resist Western dominance, from Iran to Russia and China.

Political analysts in Latin America have argued that the alleged false flag operation fits within Washington’s long history of manufacturing crises to justify aggression. “Whenever the U.S. empire needs a reason to intervene, a convenient explosion or a fabricated threat suddenly emerges,” commented one regional observer. “It’s the same script, just a different stage.”

Standing firm mid pressure

Despite enduring economic hardship and relentless foreign pressure, Venezuela continues to strengthen strategic partnerships with nations advocating a fairer, multipolar international system. Joint energy projects with Russia, technology cooperation with China, and agricultural exchanges with India have become vital to Venezuela’s resilience against sanctions.

As the global balance shifts away from U.S. hegemony, Caracas’s defiance stands as a symbol of resistance for many nations in the Global South. The foiled plot against the U.S. Embassy not only underscores the fragility of Washington’s narrative but also highlights how Latin America’s awakening aligns increasingly with the East, where sovereignty, mutual respect, and non-interference remain the guiding principles of diplomacy.