The Daily Searchlight supports the government of Ghana in its call on the government of the United States of America to respect international law.
In a statement over the weekend through our Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, the Government of Ghana expressed ‘grave concern’ over what it describes as an ‘unauthorized military invasion of Venezuela by the United States’ and the alleged abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
In a press release issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ghana strongly criticized the unilateral use of force, stating that it violates the Charter of the United Nations, international law, and the core principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity, and political independence of states.
“The Government of Ghana is keenly following the situation in Venezuela with great concern,” the statement said, noting that foreign occupation and attempts to control another country’s natural resources have historically had severe consequences for global stability.
There have been remarks attributed to U.S. President Donald Trump, suggesting that the United States would “run” Venezuela until what he described as a safe and orderly transition, and that major American oil companies would be invited to operate in the country.
Ghana described such statements as reflective of colonial and imperial ambitions, warning that they set a dangerous precedent in the post–Second World War international system.
Whilst not in support of the political and other machinations of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, the Daily Searchlight believes that the recent activities of President Donald Trump and his administration is synonymous with the Wild West of bygone days and ought to be condemned in its entirety.
We believe that any decision by one sovereign country to enter another country to undertake such fundamental actions, such as deploying military forces, ought not to be undertaken until and unless there are clear and valid reasons to do so.
Whilst the United States may claim that Maduro is behind the exportation of drugs into its jurisdiction, we state that even if these claims are true, the path chosen by the Trump Administration to solve the problem is against international law, would lead to chaos, and cause great political uncertainty in that part of the world.
There is also the matter of the unilateral seizure of Venezuela’s oil resources by the government of the United States. We believe that this action is not only unlawful, but deeply immoral and should be condemned by all right-thinking people. The decision is abhorrent, obscene and totally wrongful, and is a clear signal that the current US Administration is a throwback to the colonial era, and that, until the final removal from office through the ballot box, the current President is an safe pair of hands and a danger to the rest of the world.
The Trump Administration has not acted with proper judgment in this instance, and ought to be condemned.
(Editorial of the Daily Searchlight of 5th January, 2026)
