On Saturday, March 14, the United States flag was raised outside the U.S. Embassy in Caracas, Venezuela. It's been just over seven years since Old Glory waved in that country, and it's a symbolic indicator of just how fast President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are moving on their three-phase plan for Venezuela — faster than many of us thought they would in a post-Nicolás Maduro world.
The embassy posted a cool video of the moment online. Here, you see Chargé d’Affaires Laura Dogu and members of the military raising the flag. "The American flag represents possibility, hope, and freedom. It represents sacrifice, struggle, and overcoming insurmountable challenges," she says. "The United States Marines who care for the American flag know that better than anyone else. The raising of the flag today symbolizes all that lies ahead for the people of Venezuela and the United States."
🇺🇸 Onward with Venezuela. pic.twitter.com/lmPB6DAd65
— Embajada de los EE.UU., Venezuela (@usembassyve) March 14, 2026
U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) called it a "A significant milestone for security and partnership in the Western Hemisphere."
SOUTHCOM Commander Gen. Francis L. Donovan added, "Congratulations to the State Department, our interagency partners, and the Department of War’s joint force, including the personnel of the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group and 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit in the Caribbean, that made this historic flag raising milestone possible. We are moving forward to strengthen security and prosperity in the Western Hemisphere."
A significant milestone for security and partnership in the Western Hemisphere:
— U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) March 14, 2026
“Congratulations to the @StateDept, our interagency partners, and @DeptofWar’s joint force, including the personnel of the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group and @22nd_MEU in the Caribbean, that made… https://t.co/abIIsdS33D
On March 5, the State Department announced that we have officially re-established a diplomatic relationship with Venezuela, which will make it much easier for the Trump administration's plan to continue in various ways, including reducing the legal and political risk for companies that want to invest, which is important. It will also make it easier for the U.S. to continue to work to dismantle the regime and eventually create conditions for a peaceful transition, as the statement suggests:
The United States and Venezuela’s interim authorities have agreed to re-establish diplomatic and consular relations. This step will facilitate our joint efforts to promote stability, support economic recovery, and advance political reconciliation in Venezuela.
Our engagement is focused on helping the Venezuelan people move forward through a phased process that creates the conditions for a peaceful transition to a democratically elected government.
The United States remains committed to supporting the Venezuelan people and working with partners across the region to advance stability and prosperity.
The United States actually cut diplomatic ties with Venezuela in 2019. At the time, Maduro had just "won re-election" in 2018, or so he said, but Trump, who was serving his first term, refused to recognize Maduro as the legitimate winner.
As I wrote last week, "Maduro got mad and gave U.S. diplomats 72 hours to leave the country. Trump refused to accept that but ended up withdrawing most U.S. personnel from the embassy in Caracas for safety reasons, and there has been no diplomatic relationship since... unless you count Joe Biden bending over and handing Maduro his narco-nephews and bagman out of federal prisons. But I digress."
We still have a way to go in Venezuela, but the wins are stacking up. Unfortunately, most of the mainstream media focuses on the bad stuff and glosses over the good. It was never going to be perfect — and Rubio has said that numerous times, that there will be bumps along the way — but I truly think this moment was symbolic of what's to come. When the remaining Chavismo elements are out of power — and they will be, or this was all just a waste of time — Venezuela will be one of the United States' greatest allies and partners, assuming a Democrat president doesn't come along in 2028 and screw it up.
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