US actions in Venezuela show that the world is now controlled by a powerful force: Uday Kotak

Kotak Mahindra Bank founder Uday Kotak has linked US military action in Venezuela and the imprisoning of President Nicolás Maduro to an intensifying global race between nations to acquire « hard power », particularly control of strategic resources.

In a post on social media platform X (formally twitter) on January 4, Kotak suggested that the US strike reflects Washington’s drive to secure Venezuela’s vast energy reserves. « The United States is taking control of Venezuela, which has the largest oil reserves in the country. As I said in my year-end reflections, this is a world of hard power, and the competition between nations is on, » the veteran banker wrote.

Kotak’s remarks come amid dramatic geopolitical developments in Latin America since the US launched a military operation on January 3 that led to the capture of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. Both were flown to New York, where U.S. officials said Maduro faces lengthy criminal charges.

In his earlier published year-end reflections, Kotak had warned of a global shift away from cooperation and dialogue towards more transactional and force-driven international relations. He argued that the world is becoming less tolerant of different viewpoints, more socially divided, and hard power increasingly dominates soft power.

« Less personal interaction, environmental degradation and pollution, wider divisions in society, less tolerance for alternative views, more transient and transactional relationships, dominance of hard power against soft power, » Kotak wrote, adding that competition between nations is intensifying « with less concern for consequences. »

After the operation, US President Donald Trump publicly confirmed that Washington would take control of the Venezuelan government, at least temporarily. « We’re going to lead the country until we can make a safe, orderly and sensible transition, » Trump said at a news conference, without giving a timetable.

Venezuela has the world’s largest proven crude oil reserves, which analysts say has long shaped U.S. strategic interest in the country. Kotak’s comments underscore the growing concern among global business and political leaders that geopolitical competition for resources is intensifying, with power increasingly shaping outcomes.