Why China and Russia Won't Confront the US Over Venezuela - The Global Gambit - Pyotr Kurzin

[TexasTowelie]

As the United States ramps up pressure on Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro is discovering an uncomfortable reality: the allies he once relied on may not be willing—or able—to step in.

With Donald Trump back in the White House, American military and economic pressure on Caracas is intensifying. Oil tankers are being seized. Naval forces are moving into the Caribbean. And once again, questions of regime survival are firmly back on the table.

But this time, something is different.

Russia and China, long presented as Venezuela’s strategic backers and symbols of a rising multipolar world, are offering little more than statements of support. No meaningful military backing. No major financial lifelines. No willingness to confront Washington directly.

In this video, I break down why Moscow and Beijing are holding back, how the war in Ukraine and U.S.–China trade tensions have reshaped their priorities, and why the idea of an “axis of authoritarianism” looks far more fragile under pressure than it does in theory.

More broadly, this is a story about the limits of power, the realities of transactional alliances, and what happens when rhetoric collides with reality in today’s international system.