Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the radical left La France Insoumise party, at a protest against the US operation in Venezuela, in Paris, on January 3, 2026.
When the world order is rocked, the fractures within French politics become clear. The Trump administration’s military operation in Venezuela, which resulted in the abduction of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores on Saturday, January 3, has pushed both France’s political parties and the highest levels of the state toward a new divide over the defense of international law and multilateralism.
Just hours after US special forces intervened in Caracas, Emmanuel Macron posted on X, expressing his support for a political transition in Venezuela, which “must be peaceful, democratic, and respectful of the will of the Venezuelan people,” who he said were now “rid of Nicolas Maduro’s dictatorship.” He made no mention of the operation’s lack of respect for international law nor issued any formal condemnation of the brutal methods the Trump administration used in the operation. Trump seemed satisfied, as he even shared Macron’s message on his Truth Social account.
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