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Soldiers guard the area around the Miraflores presidential palace after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, on January 3. - AP PHOTOUS President Donald Trump says the US will run Venezuela and tap its vast oil reserves to sell to other nations following a military strike on the capital city of Caracas, which led to the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife.
He made this disclosure at a news conference in Florida, hours after US forces executed a surgical strike in Caracas to extract Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, from a heavily fortified compound around 2 am.
No US troops were killed in the mission, Trump said. One helicopter was damaged by gunfire but managed to fly out safely.
“We're going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” Trump said at a Mar-a-Lago news conference.
Maduro and Flores were taken on board the amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima, part of the larger US military force that has assembled in the southern Caribbean since last August. They are to be flown to New York to face trial on narco-terrorism conspiracy charges.
Trump posted a photo on social media showing Maduro wearing a sweatsuit and a blindfold on board the USS Iwo Jima.
Attorney General Pam Biondi also released the contents of a sealed indictment filed against Maduro, Flores and other people in relation to drug and other offences in the US District Court, Southern District of New York. The indictment painted the Maduro regime as a “corrupt, illegitimate government” fueled by a drug trafficking operation that flooded the US with cocaine.
Trump cast doubt on exiled Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado either leading or being part of any interim Venezuelan government. Trump said it would be difficult for her to lead Venezuela because "she doesn't have the support within or the respect within the country.
"We're going to make sure that country is run properly. We're designating people right now, and "we're going to let you know who those people are.”
When asked who would run Venezuela, Trump referred to Rubio and other people standing behind him.
"It's largely going to be for a period of time the people that are standing right behind me."
Trump said the US was not afraid to put American troops on the ground in Venezuela to keep the peace and had the operation to extract Maduro been unsuccessful, the US was prepared to launch an even larger strike.
After repeating his claim that Venezuela stole oil and other energy assets from the US, Trump said American oil companies will be going into Venezuela to fix its "broken infrastructure" and "start making money for the country." He promised reimbursements for Venezuelans and other people who suffered economically under Maduro's regime.
He did not explain what that meant or who could be part of any transitional regime in Venezuela. While indicating that Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez had been sworn in as interim president after Maduro's capture and had spoken with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Trump said Rodriguez had agreed to cooperate.
Residents evacuate a building near the Miraflores presidential palace after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, on January 3. - AP PHOTO
But he added it was unlikely Rodriguez or any member of Maduro's regime would hold any position of power in Venezuela for long.
Rodriguez sworn in as Venezuelan leader
In a video circulated after her swearing in, Rodriguez said, "There is only one president in this country and his name is Nicolas Maduro Moro." Shortly after the attack, Venezuela declared a national emergency and denounced the US's "extremely serious military aggression."
She did not declare herself acting president or mention a political transition. A ticker at the bottom of the screen identified her as the vice president. She gave no sign that she would be cooperating with the US.
“What is being done to Venezuela is an atrocity that violates international law,” she said. “History and justice will make the extremists who promoted this armed aggression pay.”
The Venezuelan constitution also says a new election must be called within a month in the event of the president’s absence. But experts have been debating whether the succession scenario would apply here, given the government’s lack of popular legitimacy and the extraordinary US military intervention.
Venezuelan military officials project defiance.
“They have attacked us but will not break us,” said Defence Minister General Vladimir Padrino López, dressed in fatigues.
Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello urged Venezuelans to “trust in the political leadership and military” and “get out on the streets” to defend the country’s sovereignty.
“These rats attacked and they will regret what they did,” he said of the US.
Venezuelan state TV continued to air pro-Maduro propaganda, broadcasting live images of supporters taking to the streets in Caracas in protest.
Caine: Mission a success
US Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman General Dan Caine, speaking at Mar-a-Lago, supported Trump's position that US forces in the southern Caribbean remain on high alert to deal with any situation. He said the mission to extract Maduro took months of meticulous planning involving the US military and other entities, including the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
Caine visited TT last November and held talks with Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar. After those talks, Persad-Bissessar said the discussions with Caine did not involve Venezuela but US-TT security cooperation against narco-trafficking.
Following his visit, US Marines installed a military radar at the ANR Robinson International Airport. Persad-Bissessar has insisted the radar was to deal with narco-trafficking in TT maritime areas. Government has also allowed the US military access to the Piarco and ANR Robinson International Airports for transit flights for an indefinite period of time.
Among the units reportedly involved in the mission was the US Army's elite counter-terrorism unit, Delta Force. Caine said the mission's aerial and ground components were well-oiled and executed, resulting in no US military casualties or loss of US military assets.
Videos posted online showed military helicopters flying low over buildings in Caracas and multiple explosions in different parts of the city, as US aerial forces took out targets which Caine said would have prevented ground troops from achieving their objective.
People were seen running in the streets as explosions were heard in the distance.
Mixed world reaction
A spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, "These developments constitute a dangerous precedent." The spokesperson added Guterres is "deeply concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected."
Argentine president Javier Milei said, "Today's news is excellent news for the free world."
Mexico said the US action was a "clear violation of Article 2 of the Charter of the United Nations."
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva, Colombian President Gustavo Pedro, the Chinese and Russian Foreign Ministers condemned the US attack and Maduro's capture. Colombia has deployed additional troops to its border with Venezuela to prevent any Venezuelans from fleeing into its territory.
In Santiago, Chile, Venezuelans there celebrated the US action, waving Venezuelan and US flags.
The UN Security Council, acting on an emergency request from Colombia, planned to hold a meeting on US operations in Venezuela on January 5, according to a council diplomat, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a meeting not yet made public.
US President Donald Trump says the US will run Venezuela and tap its vast oil reserves to sell to other nations following a military strike on the capital city of Caracas, which led to the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife.
English (US) ·