The US ran a war game on the aftermath of Maduro’s fall – it predicted chaos

When the US government captured Venezuela’s president, Nicolas Maduro, on Saturday, most of the world was shocked. But US officials had for years been gaming out different scenarios, including predicting what would happen if Maduro was ousted. According to one man who took part, each ended in disaster.

On today’s episode, we speak to the former Washington Post journalist Douglas Farah, who participated in war games on Venezuela during Donald Trump’s first term, as well as during the Obama and Biden administrations.

Producers: Hannah Moore and Lucy Pawle

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: A protest against US strikes on Venezuela and the capture of President Maduro, in Brazil. Tuane Fernandes/Reuters