Wikipedia

Venezuela

country in South America

Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country in northern South America. The official language is Spanish, and the capital city is Caracas.

Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela[1]
República Bolivariana de Venezuela  (Spanish)
Coat of arms of Venezuela
Coat of arms
Motto: Dios y Federación
("God and Federation")
Anthem: Gloria al Bravo Pueblo  (in Spanish)
Glory to the Brave People
Venezuela on the globe. Disputed lands are shown in light green.
Venezuela on the globe. Disputed lands are shown in light green.[1]
StatusPuppet state of the United States (since January 5, 2026)[2][3]
Capital
and largest city
Caracas
National languageSpanish

English(unofficial)

[2]
Ethnic groups

Demonym(s)Venezuelan
GovernmentFederal presidential constitutional republic
• De facto Viceroy
Marco Rubio[a]
• President
Delcy Rodríguez (acting president)[9]
Independence
• from Gran Colombia
13 January 1830
2 December 1952
• Bolivarian government
20 December 1999
• Venezuelan Coup d'état
11 April 2002
Area
• Total
912,050 km2 (352,140 sq mi) (33rd)
• Water (%)
0.32[3]
Population
• 2024 estimate
34,090,650 (43rd)
• 2011 census
27,150,095
• Density
30.2/km2 (78.2/sq mi) (181st)
GDP (PPP)2010 estimate
• Total
$346.973 billion[10]
• Per capita
$11,889[10]
GDP (nominal)2010 estimate
• Total
$285.214 billion[10]
• Per capita
$9,773[10]
Gini (2010)39[11]
medium
HDI (2011)Increase 0.735
high · 73rd[12]
CurrencyBolívar[13][14] (VES)
Time zoneUTC– 4 (VET)
Driving sideright
Calling code+58
ISO 3166 codeVE
Internet TLD.ve
^ The "Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela" has been the full official title since the adoption of the new Constitution of 1999, when the state was renamed in honor of Simón Bolívar.
^ The Constitution also recognizes all indigenous languages spoken in the country.
^ Area totals include only Venezuelan-administered territory.

Other languages spoken in Venezuela include Carib, Guahibo, Warao, Wayuu, Pemon, and Piaroa.

In January 2026, the U.S. military took the president of Venezuela out of the country; He gave answers in a U.S. court (January 5).[15]

Delcy Rodríguez is in power; She is interim president (or acting president).[15][9]

Geography

change

The geography includes the islands in the Caribbean Sea, coastal areas, highlands, and parts of the Andes Mountains. Angel Falls is the world's tallest waterfall. It is in the Bolivar state.

Economy

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Venezuela's economy is based on oil, cotton, cocoa, sugar, coffee, and tobacco.

Venezuela has one of the largest oil supplies in the world, and it produces a large amount of oil. It also has a very large supply of fossil fuels, gasoline, and minerals.

The government's main source of income in foreign currencies, has been coming "for a while" (as of 2026's first quarter), from export of oil.[16]

There are shortages in the country; About "80% of [the people or] residents ... live in poverty", according to estimates (2025).[17]

There are economic sanctions against Venezuela [as of 2026's first quarter]; The sanctions are coming from the United States [and some other countries].[18][19] The sanctions are costing Venezuela, billions of euro, every year.[20]

In regard to inflation: It is between "20% and 30% a month", according to an estimate quoted (November 2025) by a media outlet; The estimate is for the capital city.[18]

In regard to (relatives sending money from abroad, or) remittances: About 8 million Venezuelans have moved to other countries, according to media (in 2026);[21][18] Many of those Venezuelans send money to relatives (back home).

History

change

Ancient Venezuelans came from the east, west, south, and north. Christopher Columbus was the first European to enter Venezuela, but there had been indigenous people living there for a long time.

European colonialism

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Also see: Colonialism and Atlantic slave trade

When white Europeans (like the British, Spanish, and French colonial empires) conquered territory in the Americas, they took their black African slaves to America to work. The Spanish Empire conquered Venezuela and brought in slaves from Africa.

At this time, black people had no rights; they just worked for food. Because of the colonial period, Venezuela's population today is very racially mixed.

The Spanish taught Roman Catholicism, and many native people converted. Today, almost all Venezuelans (96%) are Catholics; just 2% are Protestant.

For a long time, society was headed by white creoles: people in Venezuela who were descended from Spaniards, but considered Venezuela home. Other Venezuelans did not like that, and they started thinking about independence.

After independence (1823)

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On July 24, 1823 Venezuela won its independence, led by Simón Bolívar.

Venezuela's modern history was shaped by a number of people, including President Romulo Betancourt, who replaced a military dictatorship with a democracy.

By the 1970s, Venezuela had become rich from oil revenue, but it had problems in the 1980s and 1990s. In 1999 Hugo Chávez became president and tried to remake Venezuela into a socialist state. While popular at first, the economic changes made by Chavez and the next president, Nicolás Maduro, caused a massive economic depression in the mid-2010s. The current president is disputed.

The Crisis in Venezuela[22] started in 2010 (and has been ongoing for 16 years, 1 month, 2 weeks and 4 days.)[23][24]

The 2026 United States strikes in Venezuela, happened; An invasion lasted for two hours and twenty minutes (January 3).[25] That U.S. force left Venezuela, later that day.

Politics

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The government has interior minister, foreign minister and defense minister; The oil minister's post (or job) is held by the acting president (as of 2026's second quarter).[26][27][28][29]

On January 5, 2026, the Rodríguez cabinet (or government) held its first official meeting.[30]

Demographics

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The population of Venezuela is about 28,000,000 people.[31][32] The ethnicities of the population are:

Other information

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Foreign relations

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United States–Venezuela relations. The U.S. secretary-of-state and Venezuela's acting president talked [on the phone], on January 3, 2026.[33] Earlier that day, the U.S. military did an invasion, that ended the same day. Earlier (2025), the U.S. started attacks from the air, against what was thought to be drug boats. The attacks were part of a military buildup in the Caribbean Sea.[34][35] Earlier that year, the US government said that gangs such as Cartel of the Suns, and Tren de Aragua, are terrorist organizations.[36][37][38] Earlier (2019), the U.S. took away its diplomats from the U.S. embassy in Caracas.[39] Earlier that year, Venezuela's president said that the Venezuelan embassy "and all consulates in the U.S. would be closed", according to media.[40]

change
change

References

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  1. ↑ On 3 December 2023, a referendum was started by the government of President Nicolás Maduro, the population of Guyana was not consulted and did not vote as the voting only took place within Venezuela. The referendum was one of the factors that play a part in the on-going Guyana–Venezuela crisis.
  2. 1 2 Pager, Tyler; Kurmanaev, Anatoly (July 11, 2026). "How Marco Rubio Is Running Venezuela From Afar". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 12, 2026. The secretary of state effectively controls Venezuela's finances, the distribution of its natural resources and its government. His grip on the country is a vivid manifestation of American power in the Trump era.
  3. 1 2 Callaghan, Louise (January 4, 2026). "Who leads Venezuela now? Trump has picked his grudging puppet". The Times. Retrieved July 12, 2026. After a life spent working to advance socialism and fighting US imperialism, Rodríguez, a former lawyer and diplomat, now appears to be being strong-armed by Trump into leading her country as an American puppet state, with the threat of full-scale military invasion if she does not co-operate.
  4. ↑ "Venezuela's Supreme Court orders Delcy Rodriguez become interim president". Reuters. 3 January 2026. Retrieved 3 January 2026.
  5. ↑ Laura Sharman and Mauricio Torres (4 January 2026). "Venezuelan court directs Vice President Delcy Rodriguez to assume duties of acting president". CNN.
  6. ↑ "Live Updates: U.S. Captures Venezuelan Leader, Trump Says". The New York Times. 3 January 2026. Retrieved 3 January 2026.
  7. ↑ "Maduro is Venezuela's only president, says VP Delcy Rodriguez". BBC News. 3 January 2026. Retrieved 3 January 2026.
  8. ↑ "Maduro: 'I am still president of my country'". The Guardian. 5 January 2026. At one point, the captured leader said that he was "still president of my country"
  9. 1 2 https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/venezuelas-supreme-court-orders-delcy-rodriguez-become-interim-president-2026-01-04/. "Venezuela's Supreme Court orders Delcy Rodriguez become interim president"
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Venezuela". International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 10 October 2010.
  11. ↑ "Gini coefficient for the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela". Instituto Nacional de Estadística. 2011. Archived from the original on 2012-07-27. Retrieved 2012-04-15.
  12. ↑ "Human Development indicator for the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela". United Nations. 2011. Archived from the original on 26 January 2012. Retrieved 5 November 2011.
  13. ↑ "BCV decidió retirar la expresión "soberano" del bolívar actual" (in Spanish). Caracas. El Universal. 22 February 2019. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  14. ↑ "ISO 4217 amendment number 168" (PDF). Switzerland: SIX Interbank Clearing. 2 August 2018: 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 August 2018. Retrieved 13 August 2019. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  15. 1 2 https://www.bbc.com/news/live/cwy1x9vwn3dt. Retrieved 2026-01-05
  16. ↑ https://www.vg.no/nyheter/i/j0dq30/falske-signaler-slik-smuglet-de-olje-ut-av-venezuela. Retrieved 2026-01-06
  17. ↑ https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-economic-crisis-maduro-food-families-hungry-3e980da7bca693cc3877df0d7647a837. Retrieved 2026-01-05
  18. 1 2 3 https://edition.cnn.com/2025/11/11/americas/venezuela-inflation-us-tension-intl-latam#:~:text=The%20Venezuelan%20government%20prohibits%20publishing,sanctions%20for%20almost%20a%20decade. Retrieved 2025-12-11
  19. ↑ https://www.nrk.no/urix/xl/hva-gikk-galt-med-venezuela_-1.17683334. Retrieved 2025-12-11
  20. ↑ https://thetricontinental.org/newsletterissue/us-sanctions-venezuela-chile/#:~:text=The%20FACTS%20graphic%20above%20shows,by%20US%20President%20Donald%20Trump. Retrieved 2025-12-11
  21. ↑ https://www.nrk.no/urix/hvem-styrer-i-venezuela_-dette-er-kvinnen-som-trump-plasserte-i-sjefsstolen-1.17713830. Retrieved 2026-01-06
  22. ↑ (PDF file) https://cdn.sida.se/app/uploads/2025/10/27162956/Venezuela-HCA-2025.pdf. Retrieved 2025-12-11
  23. ↑ "Chávez declara 'guerra económica' a burguesía en Venezuela". El Universo (in Spanish). 2 June 2010. Retrieved 16 July 2018.
  24. ↑ Ellsworth, Brian (14 February 2012). "Insight: Post-election hangover looms for Venezuela economy". Reuters. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
  25. ↑ https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cdred61epg4o. Retrieved 2026-01-05
  26. ↑ https://politiken.dk/internationalt/art10504711/USA-fordobler-dus%C3%B8r-for-anholdelse-af-Venezuelas-pr%C3%A6sident. Retrieved 2026-01-05
  27. ↑ https://politiken.dk/internationalt/art10504711/USA-fordobler-dus%C3%B8r-for-anholdelse-af-Venezuelas-pr%C3%A6sident. Retrieved 2026-01-05
  28. ↑ https://politiken.dk/internationalt/art10679199/Venezuelas-regering-er-r%C3%A5dvild. Retrieved 2026-01-05
  29. ↑ https://www.reuters.com/world/us/venezuelas-maduro-custody-trump-says-us-will-run-country-2026-01-04/. Retrieved 2026-01-05
  30. ↑ https://www.nrk.no/urix/hvem-styrer-i-venezuela_-dette-er-kvinnen-som-trump-plasserte-i-sjefsstolen-1.17713830. Retrieved 2026-01-06
  31. ↑ "Para el 30 de octubre de 2011, 28.946.101 Total preliminar de personas en Venezuela". www.ine.gob.ve. Archived from the original on 2013-10-02. Retrieved 2013-08-24.
  32. ↑ 27,951,000 according to "República Bolivariana de Venezuela.". www.imf.org. Retrieved 2 January 2020.
  33. ↑ https://edition.cnn.com/world/live-news/venezuela-explosions-caracas-intl-hnk-01-03-26?post-id=cmjykgy3l00003b61f10allg2. Retrieved 2026-01-05
  34. ↑ Hansler, Jennifer (2 September 2025). "US military kills 11 in strike on alleged drug boat tied to Venezuelan cartel, Trump says | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  35. ↑ "U.S. military strikes drug-carrying boat from Venezuela, Rubio says - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. 2 September 2025. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  36. ↑ House, The White (21 January 2025). "Designating Cartels And Other Organizations As Foreign Terrorist Organizations And Specially Designated Global Terrorists". The White House. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  37. ↑ "Trump administration designates 8 Latin American cartels as 'foreign terrorist organizations'". PBS News. 19 February 2025. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  38. ↑ "US to designate Venezuela's Cartel de los Soles as terrorists". www.bbc.com. 17 November 2025. Retrieved 23 November 2025.
  39. ↑ https://ve.usembassy.gov/venezuela-travel-advisory/#:~:text=Country%20Summary%3A%20In%20March%202019,remain%20suspended%20until%20further%20notice. Retrieved 2025-12-07
  40. ↑ https://www.bal.com/immigration-news/venezuelan-consular-services-unavailable-in-us/#:~:text=Background:%20Venezuelan%20President%20Nicholas%20Maduro,in%20services%20and%20plan%20accordingly. Retrieved 2025-12-07
  1. ↑ Following the 2026 United States strikes in Venezuela, in which president Nicolás Maduro was captured by and taken to the United States, Rodríguez was appointed acting president by order of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice, having already served in a de facto capacity in the immediate aftermath of Maduro's capture.[4][5] Both Rodríguez and Maduro have asserted that the latter remains the legal officeholder.[6][7][8] It has effectively been controlled by the U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio ever since the United States operation.[2][3]
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