The CIA tracked the leader of an oil-rich nation that has long baited the United States, Nicolás Maduro, to his heavily guarded compound in the capital Caracas, where he was abducted by U.S. special forces in a dawn raid on January 3. This event marked the execution of a strategy that former President Donald Trump has termed 'regime capture'.

In Maduro's place, his vice-president Delcy Rodríguez assumed power with Trump's blessing, ushering in a new, pro-U.S. era for a South American country whose leaders had historically railed against 'Yankee' imperialism. Rodríguez's public thanks to Trump on social media was seen as an act of submission to Washington's influence.

Three months after Maduro's ouster, Trump has indicated a desire to replicate this model in Iran following the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a devastating Israeli-U.S. operation. In an interview with Axios, he allegedly stated, "I have to be involved in the appointment [of his successor], like with Delcy in Venezuela."

However, South America and Middle East experts have expressed serious doubts about whether the approach that worked in Caracas could be effective 7,000 miles away in Tehran. Benjamin Gedan, a former South America director at the White House National Security Council, noted, "Turning Iran into a pliable puppet regime is much less practical than in Venezuela, where the government was already inclined to work with the U.S. as a historic partner."

Iran analysts believe Trump's demand to be consulted on the country's next leader is likely to be flatly rejected by Iranian authorities as brazen interference in domestic politics. The nation harbors bitter memories of meddling by outside powers, including Britain, Russia, and the U.S. The 1979 revolution was fueled in part by nationalist resentment over perceived foreign intervention.

Alex Vatanka, head of the Iran program at the Middle East Institute in Washington D.C., called Trump's attempt to insert himself into Iran's leadership selection "beyond delusional" and questioned whether he has a viable plan to impose a Venezuela-type scenario. He added that while external influence might be possible through individuals in Khamenei's inner circle, it requires a coherent strategy that appears lacking.

Source: www.theguardian.com