Pro-Kremlin personalities and military bloggers have criticized the United States for its removal of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, while simultaneously highlighting Russia’s own unsuccessful efforts to apprehend Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky.

U.S. President Donald Trump asserted that Washington was now “in control” of Venezuela after American forces executed a surprise operation to oust Maduro from power during an attack on Caracas last Saturday.

In response, Moscow has called for the release of Maduro and his spouse, denouncing their capture as an “unacceptable violation of the sovereignty of an independent nation.”

However, Russian military bloggers—popular figures who often scrutinize their nation’s military actions in Ukraine—pointed out the disparity between the U.S. operation and Russia’s failed attempt to seize Kyiv and topple Zelensky’s administration back in February 2022.

“Based on the footage from Venezuela, U.S. forces faced little to no resistance in the air or on the ground. I can’t fathom Russian helicopters flying freely over Kyiv. Ukraine has been bracing for a conflict with Russia for eight years, while Venezuela has merely been showcasing military parades for years,” pro-Kremlin war correspondent Alexander Kots shared with his over 512,000 followers on Telegram.

“Currently, we confront a highly capable adversary that receives unprecedented backing… We stumbled over our own missteps in 2022,” Kots added. “Nonetheless, there are still many global examples from which we can draw valuable lessons.”

The pro-war Telegram channel Starshe Eddy, boasting about 600,000 followers, criticized those attempting to belittle the U.S. operation.

“To claim that the entire event in Caracas was trivial and that Russia could have performed significantly better with the right orders is merely boisterous, misguided patriotism,” the channel commented.

“Clearly, the military has no orders to abduct [Zelensky]. He serves far greater purposes in his current role than if he were imprisoned in Lefortovo,” Starshe Eddy stated. “That being said, many lower-ranking individuals could be removed to boost prestige and recognition.”

Pro-war blogger Alexander Kartavykh humorously noted that while “the Americans were seizing Maduro, we managed to ‘capture’ a raccoon from Kherson,” referencing the animals taken from Kherson Zoo during Russia’s retreat in November 2022.

“If you initiate the next ‘special military operation’ without removing the military and political leadership and harbor naive notions of ‘brotherly nations,’ you are fools, and your descendants will curse you,” he remarked, referring to one of the Kremlin’s rationales for invading Ukraine in 2022.

Ultra-nationalist thinker Alexander Dugin characterized the developments in Venezuela as “a pressing and critical challenge for Russia.”

“The capture of Maduro underscores that international law has become irrelevant—only the law of power prevails,” he stated, urging Russia to make decisions and take actions “with urgency.”

“The conflict in Ukraine must not be halted under any circumstances—victory must be achieved,” he insisted. “Look at Venezuela. If we don’t eliminate this threat now, they will eliminate us either tomorrow or today. If needed, we must be ready to confront the United States as well. While we may not conquer them, we can certainly defend ourselves.”

Veterans of the FSB’s Alpha special forces were critical of the U.S. operation to seize Maduro, arguing it lacked “particular professionalism.”

Alpha veteran and FSB colonel Vitaly Demidkin asserted that Moscow “could easily abduct Zelensky, but we adhere to international law. That’s why we aren’t taking such actions for the time being. Our personnel excel in every regard, without question.”

Although Moscow failed to topple Zelensky in 2022, Russia presently controls around 20% of Ukrainian territory, and the UN has accused Russian authorities of committing crimes against humanity against Ukrainian civilians.

Igor Girkin, the imprisoned former commander of Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, remarked that the Maduro operation represented “not just an irritating slap on the wrist… we have once again sustained a blow to our reputation.”

“The U.S. demonstrated how a major power should respond to emerging threats before they escalate into serious challenges,” Girkin noted.

Even though Caracas has historically been Russia’s closest ally in South America and Putin and Maduro established a strategic partnership in May 2025, Moscow has remained passive as the Venezuelan leader was taken to New York to face criminal charges.

“Once again, another nation that relied on Russia’s support has been left in the lurch,” Girkin commented, likely alluding to ousted Kremlin ally Bashar al-Assad of Syria. “Naturally, embroiled in the bloody quagmire of Ukraine, we are hardly in a position to do much, much less extend assistance to Venezuela on the other side of the world, right under the United States’ gaze.”