Trump Used Venezuela Raid to Warn China: 'Keep Out of US'

• The Trump administration used the January 3 raid on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to send a clear strategic signal to Beijing.
• The operation aimed to demonstrate that China's growing influence in Latin America would not be tolerated by Washington.
• Donald Trump explicitly warned China and Russia to stay out of the Western Hemisphere, stating, "We don’t want you there."
• The raid exposed the limits of China's power projection, as US forces neutralized Chinese-supplied Venezuelan air defenses.
• China rejected the US action, criticizing Washington's "unilateral and bullying behaviour" but US officials urged Beijing to reassess its regional position.

Why It Matters: Trump leveraged the Venezuela raid to aggressively warn China against expanding its influence in the US's backyard.