China Watches, Russia Acts as America MISREADS the Venezuela Endgame. Is the US Following in the Footsteps of the British Empire's Decline? - Afzal Tahir

The analysis, drawing from geopolitical realist John Mearsheimer's recent video discussion (posted above), posits that the United States is mirroring the gradual decline of the British Empire. This decline is characterized not by sudden military defeats but by the erosion of economic and financial dominance, where overreliance on coercive tools like sanctions inadvertently fosters alternatives among rivals and even allies. 

Mearsheimer argues that the British Empire's fall was marked by the pound sterling's displacement as the global reserve currency, a process accelerated when other nations realized they could bypass British financial systems. Similarly, the US's petrodollar hegemony is cracking, as policies of economic isolation push countries to develop parallel systems, hastening a multipolar world.

This perspective appears substantiated by current events. In Venezuela, US sanctions intended to cripple the Maduro popular government have instead driven the country to pivot toward China, Russia, and Iran, bypassing dollar-based transactions and demonstrating viable alternatives to US dominance. 

The US could slap Britain with sanctions

 if Labour move to ban Elon Musk’s 

platform X, with lawmakers promising

 'there will be consequences'

This not only isolates the US from key resources like Venezuelan oil but also signals to the Global South that survival outside the US orbit is possible. Extending this logic, that US policies are now straining relations with traditional allies, such as in the escalating tensions over Elon Musk's platform X (formerly Twitter). Here, threats of US sanctions against the UK for potential regulatory actions under the Online Safety Act illustrate how American overreach in defending corporate interests could alienate Europe, creating diplomatic "alternatives" like closer EU regulatory alignment independent of US influence.

While historical analogies are imperfect—the US transition may unfold faster due to advanced financial technologies—the pattern holds: dominance breeds resistance. The Venezuela case exemplifies economic decline, while the X dispute highlights emerging fissures in transatlantic relations, potentially accelerating US isolation if not addressed.