ETV's foreign affairs show "Välisilm" delved deeper. It spoke to experts and Venezuelan nationals.

The U.S. military operation early Saturday morning in Venezuela's capital Caracas lasted only a few hours. U.S. authorities have said several months had been spent in its preparation, however.

Maduro, 63, president since 2013, was widely considered to have been leading an authoritarian government. It was characterized by electoral fraud, human rights abuses, corruption, censorship and severe economic hardship.

He was taken, with his wife, by special forces from his own bedroom to an awaiting U.S. naval vessel, the USS Iwo Jima. From there he was flown to New York, where he will face trial. He was paraded before the cameras while in DEA custody on touchdown in New York.

U.S. President Donald Trump has accused Maduro of having been at the apex of drug trafficking and narco-terrorism activities affecting the U.S. He also accused him of being the head of a corrupt, illegitimate regime at home.

Trump said he watched the action to seize Maduro, pointedly referred to as a special military operation, unfold, as if watching a TV show. "This was one of the most stunning, effective, and powerful displays of American military might and competence in American history. No nation in the world could achieve what America achieved," Trump said on Saturday.

International law professor: Would anyone cry for Eastern Europe?

International law has had its distinct times and different eras, Lauri Mälksoo, professor of international law at the University of Tartu, noted.

For a long time now we have been living in an era in which there has been a ban on the use of armed force for, for instance, regime change as seemingly seen at the weekend. While that principle has been violated from time to time, Mälksoo told "Välisilm," those violations have always been greeted with condemnation.

However, things have changed more recently, he said. "Lately the number and quality of these violations has been rising. This somewhat calls into question whether major powers are prepared to adhere to the prohibition on the use of armed force," Mälksoo told "Välisilm."

International law has sometimes come under criticism over the difficulty in enforcement, compared with other branches of law, subject to domestic authorities. This has tended to make it dependent on the will of great powers. This has implications for Estonia too.

"As many politicians have been saying now — none of us is mourning Nicolás Maduro," he observed. "But the downside of that thinking is that if something happens in Eastern Europe, will anyone mourn that Eastern Europe? In the run up to World War Two there had also been debate going on in Western Europe about whether Danzig was worth dying for. This is why any small state must always look at the effects of precedent. But major powers have also had a certain role in upholding international law. Periods of stability in international law have also been underpinned by the fact that relations between great powers have been at least somewhat stable. In the view of some, the Cold War was also such a period," Mälksoo continued.

Venezuelan expat in Estonia: This transition will take time

Rolando Beaujon is a Venezuelan living in Estonia who "Välisilm" spoke to. He said that the capture of Maduro is a mini-victory, worth celebrating. But it would be naïve to think that it will bring sweeping regime changes in his country.

"This transition will take time. It will be a bit difficult. We are very aware of that and live in this context, each day at a time," he said.

"I can say that those who are already outside [Venezuela] make up one third of the population. That also matters. Of course, everything is more dangerous to those who are still in Venezuela. What is happening there, when I was speaking to acquaintances and family members, is that people are afraid to celebrate," Beaujon added.

None of this means the people have no plans on how to move forward, however, he went on.

"We have learned how to live in such a context, where so many things do not depend on us. For this reason, people do not want to take risks. But they are certainly happy," he said.

While Maduro's fall sparked celebrations among Venezuelans living outside the country, inside the country, what comes next may prove far more complex than the special operation itself was.

Trump has said the U.S. will take conservatorship of Venezuela's leadership for an unstated period of time. U.S. oil companies would begin operating there. Cooperation was first and foremost expected from Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, whose own legitimacy to rule has been questioned in the past.

Rodríguez is in any case the current de facto Venezuelan leader. By her recent statements she was resolute that Venezuela, which like many other Latin American countries became independent from Spain around 200 years ago, would remain a free country.

"If there is one thing that is clear to the people of Venezuela and to this country, it is that we will never again become slaves and we will never again become the colony of any empire," she said.

Other ordinary Venezuelans were skeptical of the long-term changes the removal of Maduro may bring.

"Mr. Trump thinks that if he takes Maduro away, the revolution will end. No, the revolution will continue. We are not going to allow those people who tried to kill us to come and take power in Venezuela — we cannot allow that," said one, Maria Ayde.

There are both pro- and anti-Maduro voices to be heard in the crowd.

"Many Venezuelans are very happy right now because of what just happened. Others are not, depending on their views. But honestly, we have a little more hope right now," another Venezuelan, Luis Arteaga, said.

Meanwhile, Trump has also postured towards Venezuela's neighbor, Colombia.

"Colombia's very sick too, led by a sick man who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States. He's not been doing it very long, let me tell you," he said to the press pack while on Air Force One, after the Caracas operation.

Trump's remarks on Greenland, part of the Kingdom of Denmark, and the U.S. "needing" it for security reasons, have received much international attention too.

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