From Mossadegh In Iran To Maduro In Venezuela: How Secret Regime‑Change Operations Evolved As US Strategy Worldwide | World News

US Regime Change Strategy: In the early 1950s, Iran was at the crossroads of democracy and the influence of powerful nations. Then-Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh strongly defended that his country’s oil belonged to the Iranian people, not foreign companies. When he pressed for the nationalization of Iranian oil, previously controlled by British companies, alarm bells rang in London and Washington.

Fearing losing influence and access to vital resources, British intelligence enlisted the support of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to oust the elected prime minister from power. In August 1953, a covert operation by the CIA and Britain’s MI6 succeeded in overthrowing Mossadegh. It restored the monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, effectively ending Iran’s brief experiment with democratic oil ownership.

The coup, known as Operation Ajax, was motivated by fears of Communist expansion during the Cold War and the desire to protect the West’s oil interests. The violent change of political order in Tehran resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people.

According to scholars who study U.S. foreign policy, between 1945 and 1989 the United States made 64 covert attempts, mostly led by the CIA, to change governments in other countries as part of broader efforts to protect its strategic interests around the world.

Historians now view events in Iran as a defining moment in American foreign policy; here open support for democracy gave way to covert interventions that prioritized strategic control over the wishes of local people. The 1953 coup would leave deep scars in Iran’s political memory and fuel decades-long suspicions about Western intentions.

Analysts believe that the repercussions of this intervention helped influence the nature of Iran’s subsequent revolution and its complex relationship with the United States.

More than 70 years later, echoes of this approach can be seen in Washington’s actions towards Venezuela, another country whose natural resources and geopolitical alliances have become a flashpoint in US foreign policy. In late 2025 and early 2026, the Donald Trump administration increased military and legal pressure on the Venezuelan government led by President Nicolás Maduro.

In a dramatic escalation, on January 3, 2026, the US launched ‘Operation Absolute Resolve’ in Caracas, involving airstrikes and special operations forces. The operation resulted in the capture of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who were sent to New York to face charges related to alleged narcoterrorism and drug trafficking.

The intervention was the most significant direct action by the United States against a dominant government in Latin America in decades.

Washington has described its moves as part of a broader campaign against “narcoterrorism” and “criminal networks” operating in the region, even as Venezuela’s leaders and their allies deny the allegations. Caracas has described US military actions, including the seizure of oil tankers and Caribbean patrols, as acts of “piracy” and “illegal aggression” aimed at seizing its natural resources under the guise of law enforcement.

The US government has also pursued economic and financial leverage by imposing sanctions on individuals and companies in both Iran and Venezuela for their roles in the drone and missile programs.

In late December 2025, the Treasury Department targeted 10 Iranian and Venezuelan individuals and organizations for alleged involvement in a joint weapons network, highlighting concerns about drone production in Venezuela with ties to Tehran.

These sanctions demonstrate a strategy that blends punitive financial pressure with military and covert actions to weaken Iran’s allied global partners and create leverage for political change.

The developing situation in Venezuela did not go unnoticed by Tehran. Iran has long viewed Caracas as an important economic and strategic ally with oil deals, military cooperation and joint efforts to evade U.S. sanctions. Following Maduro’s capture, Iranian political circles expressed concerns that the loss of Caracas could weaken Tehran’s regional influence and disrupt economic ties. Some have warned that the outage could cost billions of dollars in investments and loans.

At the same time, international reactions to US actions are also loud. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov condemned the operation in Venezuela as a violation of international law and a continuation of US unilateralism, linking it to broader tensions with Iran and criticizing the erosion of global norms.

A Pattern?

These developments reveal a pattern in American foreign policy in which covert operations, sanctions, and military force are used to influence or remove governments deemed hostile to U.S. strategic interests.

The 1953 coup in Iran and the 2026 intervention in Venezuela are separated by decades and geography; But both events illustrate how Washington’s efforts to change political outcomes abroad continue to influence how other nations view their independence and security.