Opinion: Foreign Forces Did Not Start Venezuela's Transition. Venezuela Did

Javier Corrales is professor of political science at Amherst College and author of Fixing Democracy.

Venezuela's authoritarian government is unraveling, and possibly undergoing regime transition. Outside forces are playing an important role — but in an unexpected fashion.

Typically, foreign governments create conditions inside a country for a rupture with the status quo, by providing moral, financial or even military support. But in Venezuela, since 2015, it's been the foreign policies of Venezuelans themselves that have triggered an international response, not the other way around.

Here's how the crisis unfolded. In May 2018, socialist President Nicolás Maduro declared himself winner in an election that was unfree, unfair and fraudulent. The day of his inauguration, Jan. 10, National Assembly President Juan Guaidó refused to recognize Maduro's new term, calling him "a usurper" for