New Delhi, Jan. 16 -- The US capture of Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, from their official residence in Caracas in a military raid has sent shockwaves around the world and drawn widespread condemnation. Normally, such a breach of sovereignty, carried out without authorization from the UN Security Council, would constitute a clear act of war under international law. Yet Venezuela's South American neighbours have been notably circumspect in their reactions-an ambivalence that exposes deep divisions within the Latin American community.

For Brazil, governed by President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and subjected to 50 percent tariffs by the Trump administration, the moment presents a choice between two unpalata...