Following US airstrikes and the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a dramatic and unprecedented operation, President Donald Trump reportedly warned that other Latin American countries -- Mexico, Cuba and Colombia -- could be next, accusing them of drug manufacturing and harbouring cartels.
Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were taken into custody by the United States, and Trump declared that the operation had removed Maduro from power and that the US would temporarily “run the country” while a political transition is organised.
The primary justification cited by Washington was a set of federal indictments in New York accusing Maduro of leading a “narco-terrorism” network that allegedly flooded the United States with illegal drugs, including cocaine and fentanyl, to “destroy American lives”. Venezuela has vehemently rejected the allegations, saying the real motive behind the “military aggression” was to plunder the country’s oil and mineral resources.
According to Axios, Trump has ramped up pressure on what he described as “troubling neighbours.” On Cuba, he said the country was “a failing nation right now.” Referring to Mexico, he claimed drug cartels were running the country and said, “we have to do something.” On Colombia, Trump alleged that it has three major cocaine factories and accused President Gustavo Petro of “making cocaine” -- charges similar to those he has levelled against Venezuela.
Codenamed Operation Absolute Resolve, the operation was carried out at around 2.00 am local time, when elite US Delta Force operators, backed by FBI and CIA assets, breached President Nicolás Maduro’s primary residence inside the Fort Tiuna military complex in Caracas. Maduro and his wife were taken into custody and flown out of the country on Saturday to face federal “narco-terrorism” charges in the United States.
After removing the leftist leader, Donald Trump said that the United States will "run" Venezuela and tap its huge oil reserves. Trump said he was "designating people" from his cabinet to be in charge in Venezuela. "We're going to have our very large United States oil companies, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure," he said, specifying, "We'll be selling large amounts of oil".
Meanwhile, the Constitutional Chamber of Venezuela’s Supreme Court has appointed Vice President Delcy Rodriguez as acting president. Rodriguez will assume “the office of President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, in order to guarantee administrative continuity and the comprehensive defence of the Nation”, the court ruled.
Maduro was indicted on various US charges, including narco-terrorism conspiracy, and is expected to make an initial appearance in Manhattan federal court on Monday. His wife also faces charges, including cocaine importation conspiracy.
The Venezuelan government condemned the military aggression, calling it an extremely serious development that warrants the intervention of the international community. "The objective of this attack is none other than to seize Venezuela's strategic resources, particularly its oil and minerals, attempting to forcibly break the nation's political independence. They will not succeed," Venezuela said. Maduro's apparent successor, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, decried the "kidnapping" and called for the immediate release of the President.
US forces bombed Caracas and other areas, damaging critical infrastructure, including the power grid, during the operation. Venezuelan media reported that at least 40 people were killed in the overnight attack.
Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year and dedicated it to Donald Trump, said the “hour of freedom” had arrived following Nicolás Maduro’s capture. She said Maduro would now face international justice for the heinous crimes committed against Venezuelans and citizens of many other nations, adding that, having refused to accept a negotiated solution, the United States government had fulfilled its promise to enforce the law.
The capture of Maduro drew mixed reactions, with some leaders condemning the move while others welcomed it. While Cuban President described the action as “state terrorism” by the United States, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Britain “shed no tears over the end of his regime”.
US–Venezuela tensions stem from years of strained relations marked by sanctions, disputed elections, and sweeping criminal charges. The rupture began in 1999 with Hugo Chavez’s socialist 'Bolivarian Revolution,' which nationalised American oil interests and steered the country toward openly anti-US alliances with Russia and Iran. This decades-long friction deepened through “maximum pressure” sanctions, a worsening humanitarian crisis, and a 2020 US bounty on Maduro. It culminated in the shift from economic isolation to direct military intervention under Trump on Saturday.
Source: India Today