China accused the United States of engaging in blatant hegemonic behavior by arresting Maduro.

China's official news agency Xinhua published an editorial condemning the U.S. government's arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro as a blatant act of hegemony.

In its Sunday (January 4) commentary, Xinhua reported that at dawn local time on Saturday (January 3), the U.S. military launched a large-scale military strike against Venezuela, seized President Maduro, and forcibly took him to the United States. On the same day, U.S. President Donald Trump publicly declared that the United States would "administer" Venezuela and announced that major American oil companies would enter Venezuela, investing billions of dollars (approximately 1billionequalsaboutS1.2 billion) to "repair" Venezuela’s oil infrastructure and generate profits.

The editorial stated that if the U.S. military’s open, brazen use of force against a sovereign state and abduction of its head of state in full view of the world constitutes naked hegemonism, then the U.S. president’s subsequent remarks have completely torn off the hypocritical mask of "combating narco-terrorism," laying bare the true face of resource imperialism.

The commentary noted that shifting from claims of "judicial justice" to outright "oil business," the United States has once again demonstrated to the world its complete modern-day pirate logic: first fabricate charges, then use military force to destroy a sovereign government and overthrow its regime, immediately followed by the unchecked entry of its own capital to carve up the nation’s natural resources. Such actions by the United States blatantly disregard international law and effectively drag the world back into an era of barbaric colonial plunder.

The editorial added that in response to America’s open violation of the UN Charter, global outrage is intensifying. UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated that the U.S. action against Venezuela "sets a dangerous precedent." Democratic U.S. Senator Ruben Gallego of Arizona sharply criticized America for having become "the world’s bully."

The commentary concluded by noting that even America’s ally, the European Union, issued a call urging that "international law and the principles of the UN Charter must be respected under all circumstances." Chilean President Gabriel Boric’s remark—"Today it’s Venezuela; tomorrow it could be any country"—articulates the widespread concern shared across the international community.