LAW · POWER · SOVEREIGNTY

What happens when enforcement crosses a border?

Two books examining the capture of Nicolás Maduro and the questions it raises for international law, domestic authority and the future of sovereign order.

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BY LOOI TECK KHEONG · INTERNATIONAL LAW & PUBLIC POLICY

THE SOVEREIGNTY RECKONING 2026

01 / THE BOOKS

Start with the moment.
Follow the consequences.

The Enforcement Age offers a strategic introduction. The Sovereignty Reckoning develops a deeper legal and comparative analysis of the same event.

01 · THE PRIMER

The Enforcement Age

The Maduro Capture and the End of Strategic Patience

An accessible strategic orientation to the questions of enforcement, power and international order raised by the January 2026 operation.

ISBN 9798233306013

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02 · THE LEGAL ANALYSIS

The Sovereignty Reckoning

A Critical Analysis of International Law, US Domestic Authority, Venezuelan Constitutional Order and the Geopolitics of the Maduro Capture

A sustained examination of four intersecting legal and strategic orders, head of state immunity, the use of force, and the contested future of sovereignty.

ISBN 9789819462407

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02 / THE ARGUMENT

THE SOVEREIGNTY RECKONING

Four orders.
One contested event.

The book places the Maduro capture under four lenses. Each asks a different question about authority, legitimacy and the limits of enforcement.

International law

The prohibition on force, sovereignty and immunity.

US domestic law

Federal authority and the criminal prosecution.

Venezuelan law

Constitutional order and domestic legitimacy.

Strategic doctrine

Hemispheric priorities and great power competition.

The author's thesis holds that an operation may be defensible under one legal order while breaching another. The book examines that tension rather than treating any single perspective as conclusive.

03 / READERS & INSTITUTIONS

For serious discussion
across disciplines.

Relevant to courses and research in public international law, comparative constitutional law, international relations, security studies and public policy.

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FOR EDUCATORS

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04 / ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Looi Teck Kheong

International lawyer, policy practitioner and author based in Singapore.

With more than 35 years across legal practice, regional policy and governance, Looi served as Assistant Director and Head of the Competition, Consumer Protection and Intellectual Property Rights Division at the ASEAN Secretariat from 2019 to 2022.

His work spans international economic law, regional integration and technology governance. He holds postgraduate degrees in law, public policy and applied economics from the National University of Singapore.

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05 / FIND THE BOOKS