Troops were sent into the capital of another nation to detain its president and bring him back to face a trial. And the invading nation intends to “run the country.”

It was an unprecedented outrageous act.

The actions of the United States to, in effect, destroy order through the use of force rather than protect that order through the rule of law can never be justified.

We criticize the move in the strongest possible terms.

SELF-PRAISE FOR THE ASSAULT 

On Jan. 3, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that U.S. troops had conducted a military operation in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas and had detained Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife.

Special forces were used in the maneuver and key facilities, such as the presidential office, were seized within a few hours.

A number of explosions were confirmed in and around the capital and local reports said dozens of people, including civilians, had died.

Maduro and his wife were transported to New York and U.S. law enforcement officials said they were indicted on drug trafficking and other charges.

The couple will likely face trial in the United States.

At a news conference from his Florida residence, Trump described the mission as “an assault like people have not seen since World War II.”

He tried to legitimize the move by pointing to human rights violations and oppression under the Maduro regime.

Among the world’s leaders in holding the largest oil reserves, Venezuela became a socialist nation in the........

© The Asahi Shimbun