The US is turning the screws on Nicolas Maduro

Actions often speak louder than words. In the case of the United States seizing Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro’s multi-million dollar luxury aircraft this week, that perhaps rings true. The international tip-toeing around how best to respond to Venezuela’s election result – considered fraudulent by many – and the turbulent repression that has ensued, has had global leaders scratching their heads for over a month. But the seizure of the airplane could hit Maduro where it hurts.

Strongly-worded statements condemning the lack of transparency around the election and the antiquated measure of throwing dissenters in jail have fallen on deaf ears. So the taking of the Dassault Falcon 900EX from the Dominican Republic, where it had been stationed since May, was a decisive move by the US. It’s the kind of bold signal many opposition supporters in Venezuela had been waiting for.

The US alleges that the plane, a kind of Venezuelan equivalent of America’s Air Force One, was initially smuggled out of the US and was in violation of export controls and sanctions laws.