📍Just 5 hours before the US detained Maduro, Chinese officials arrived in Venezuela to negotiate oil-related matters.

📌President Xi immediately announced his New Year’s speech as a signal that "Taiwan will be reclaimed soon," with military exercises near Taiwan’s coast (on an unprecedented scale in history), perhaps indicating that China’s intention to attack Taiwan is no longer far off.

📌China currently imports >70% of its oil needs. In the scenario where Beijing attacks Taiwan, if the US imposes financial blockades and energy sanctions, China will face a serious oil shortage risk.

📌China’s vital oil import routes are Hormuz -> Malacca -> South China Sea. China’s long-term strategy is “de-Americanizing its oil sources”:
- Russia (pipeline, but dependent on geopolitics)
- Iran (sanctioned, difficult payments)
- Central Asia (limited)
- The best option is Venezuela -> the world’s largest oil reserves, right in America’s backyard.
-> Perhaps intelligence from the Chinese delegation’s meeting is so risky that the US must immediately attack and detain Maduro.