BLACKWATER USA | DAILY BRIEF - Blackwater Worldwide

Posted by BW Actual on Dec 12th 2025

Venezuela

The Trump administration ratcheted up pressure on Nicolas Maduro's authoritarian regime in Venezuela with new sanctions on six vessels allegedly involved in illegal oil shipments, as well as three of Maduro's nephews-in-law (two of whom were previously convicted on drug trafficking charges in U.S. courts before being freed in a prisoner swap).
The White House said it had begun a "legal process" to confiscate oil from the tanker that U.S. forces seized off the coast of Venezuela earlier this week. Officials say the U.S. is preparing to seize more Venezuela-linked tankers in the region.
Separately, opposition leader Maria Corina Machado confirmed that she "had support from the United States government" when she snuck out of Venezuela to accept her Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo earlier this week.
Machado didn't elaborate on U.S. involvement in her escape, but CBS reported that it entailed a marine exfiltration by the U.S.-based Grey Bull Rescue Foundation.
It remains unclear whether Machado will try to return to her country. The head of Grey Bull said his private rescue team was only engaged for a one-way trip and what happens next is "for [Machado] to determine and for her to decide." Maduro's government considers her a fugitive and has implied that it will try to block her re-entry attempt.

DRC

Rwanda-backed M23 rebels announced that they had "liberated" the South Kivu city of Uvira, confirming the breakdown of the peace deal that Rwanda's Pres. Kagame and DRC's Pres. Tshisekedi signed at the White House less than a week prior.
Rwanda implausibly denies backing the M23 - despite clear evidence that it's not only backing the group, but also arming it and embedding troops with it.

Sudan and South Sudan

Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF) seized the Heglig - Sudan's largest producing oil field - from government forces on Monday, forcing defeated Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) fighters over the border into South Sudan.
The RSF's takeover quickly sparked a crisis for South Sudan, which depends on Heglig's processing facility and pipelines for exporting most of its oil - and thus most of its overall exports.
South Sudan's Pres. Salva Kiir immediately launched emergency talks with RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (aka Hemedti) and SAF chief Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and emerged with a tripartite agreement for South Sudanese troops to replace RSF forces and "completely neutralise the Heglig field from any combat operations."
South Sudan's Chief of Defense Staff insists his country's forces will "maintain strict neutrality" at Heglig.
For now, the RSF and SAF seem content with the arrangement: neither warring party wanted the other to reap revenues from Heglig's oil, so both likely preferred for Juba to take control.

Bulgaria

Bulgaria's Prime Minister, Rosen Zhelyazkov, resigned following weeks of youth-led demonstrations. That makes Bulgaria's the first European government to collapse under the weight of "Gen Z" discontent.
Though a large share of the protesters who brought down Zhelyazkov's government were young and frustrated with rising costs and stagnant salaries, older critics also joined the opposition movement as it expanded to express anger over government corruption and pro-Russia trends in foreign policy.

Thailand

Thailand's Prime Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, dissolved parliament and began a two-month countdown to fresh elections.
Charnvirakul leads a minority government with a tenuous grip on power. He likely thinks this is a good opportunity for his Bhumjaithai Party to capitalize on nationalism amidst border tensions with Cambodia and boost its representation in the legislature.