Category: Peace and War

The Real Reason Trump Invaded Venezuela: It’s not drugs, democracy, or even oil. It’s power.

Posted on

The Progressive, January 6, 2026 and republished by Common Dreams as,
Until Democrats Confront the Lawlessness of Trump’s Venezuela Assault, Expect More War.
The U.S. attack resulted from having an incredibly corrupt and autocratic-minded President using his office to enrich himself and his supporters, deploying the country’s armed forces against his own citizens, abusing the justice system to punish political opponents, and manipulating the electoral process to try to stay in power. Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has engaged in similar behavior as well…

Interview: Monroe Doctrine Rises Again

Posted on

WORT FM, Madison, January 8, 2026 (48-min):
The Monroe Doctrine Rises Again in Venezuela.
Host Allen Ruff and Professor Stephen Zunes discuss his recent article in The Progressive, “The Real Reason Trump Invaded Venezuela: It’s not drugs, democracy, or even oil. It’s power.” Zunes puts the Trump administration’s lies — calling Maduro a narco-terrorist despite that no fentanyl comes from Venezuela, that Maduro stole “our oil” despite Venezuela nationalizing its oil in the 1970s, and more — in the context of international law, the Monroe Doctrine, Venezuelan opposition to Maduro, and the US military’s recent boat-bombing campaign. He says the US will control all Venezuelan oil for the foreseeable, but “Trump plans to take control of the oil personally and stash the cash in offshore accounts.”

Interview: How Catherine Connolly Can Redefine Irish Politics

Posted on

Counterpunch November 14, 2025, by Daniel Falcone
An Interview With Yvonne Galligan that quotes Zunes on the significance of the election of the new democratic socialist president of Ireland.
“Activist and author Medea Benjamin commented, ‘Ireland just reminded the world what moral leadership looks like, electing a president who speaks for justice, stands with Palestine, rejects NATO’s militarism and wants to preserve Ireland’s neutrality.’ At the same time, Connolly crucially ‘still supports Ukraine and condemns Russian aggression, [and] one can legitimately recognize both,’ indicated international relations scholar Stephen Zunes.

Interview: Gaza/Israel ceasefire

Posted on

Hudson Mohawk Magazine/Sanctuary Community Radio,
upstate New York, Oct. 22, 2025 (10-mins.) with Mark Dunlea.
After two weeks, the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza is still holding, despite numerous continued killings by Israel’s IDF and a delay by Hamas in turning over some bodies of dead hostages they claim are buried under the rubble from Israel’s missiles. Updates the situation and Zunes’s article, “A Shaky Ceasefire is Better Than an Ongoing Genocide.”

A Shaky Ceasefire Is Better Than An Ongoing Genocide

Posted on

By Stephen Zunes The Progressive, October 16, 2025;
republished by CommonDreams.org, October 17, 2025,
“It’s Up to the Global Community to Transform
the Gaza Ceasefire Into a Lasting Peace.”
But recent violations by Israel call the new deal into question. Whether Israel actually withdraws from the occupied Gaza Strip and upholds the ceasefire remains in question, so long as the Trump administration and US congressional leadership of both parties refuse to condition military aid to Israel.