Why has Iran resolved to ensure crippling sanctions and exist as a pariah state in the international system? Is the Iranian leadership rational for seeking nuclear weapons?

U.S. justifications for increasing sanctions on Venezuela in recent months have been ideological as well as humanitarian. Venezuela, which has experienced a shocking descent into political and economic chaos over the past decade, has a history of emancipatory struggle and socialist revolution which informs every decision U.S. policy architects make when dealing with the turbulent country. Under President Trump’s administration, the strength of the United States’ capitalist and democratic convictions has collided with the authoritarian, centralized nature of the Maduro regime in a way that has exacerbated, rather than alleviated, the immense stress on the Venezuelan population. Combined with the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, these sanctions and ideological battles are proving deadly to the country’s citizens and its budding government opposition. The Critical Theory of International Relations demands that we as Americans re-evaluate our attitude towards Venezuela, keeping in mind the moral responsibilities we have to encourage freedom and justice. It is time to heed the call of a new moral expectation: to relieve Venezuelans’ suffering and rewrite our policies in a new era of global challenges.