Trump says US will be ‘very strongly involved’ in Venezuela oil industry
The United States is going to be “very strongly involved” in Venezuela’s oil industry after the operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, President Donald Trump told Fox News on Saturday.
He said:
We have the greatest oil companies in the world, the biggest, the greatest, and we’re going to be very much involved in it.
Key events
Edward Helmore
President Donald Trump told Fox News that he had watched the raid in real time on a video feed and seen a US military team break through steel doors in “a matter of seconds.”
“I’ve never seen anything like it actually,” he said, adding that no American troops were killed. But he suggested some were injured when their helicopter was hit.
Trump said that Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, had been taken to the USS Iwo Jima and were being transferred to New York where they were indicted on narco-trafficking charges in 2020.
France says military operation behind Maduro’s capture goes against international law
The United States’ military operation which resulted in the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro went against the principles of international law, said French foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot on Saturday.
Barrot wrote on X:
The military operation that led to the capture of Nicolás Maduro violates the principle of not resorting to force, that underpins international law.
France reiterates that no lasting political solution can be imposed from the outside and that only sovereign people themselves can decide their future.
JD Vance hails ‘truly impressive operation’ in Venezuela and says ‘stolen oil must be returned to US’
Tiago Rogero
Tiago Rogero is the Guardian’s South America correspondent, based in Brazil.
The US vice-president, JD Vance, hailed what he called a “truly impressive operation” in Venezuela that culminated in the capture of the dictator Nicolás Maduro.
Posting on social media as he reshared Donald Trump’s post about the action, Vance wrote:
The president offered multiple off-ramps, but was very clear throughout this process: the drug trafficking must stop, and the stolen oil must be returned to the United States.
Maduro is the newest person to find out that President Trump means what he says. Kudos to our brave special operators who pulled off a truly impressive operation.
The vice-president invoked two of the main arguments the US has used to justify its four-month-long military pressure on Venezuela: a supposed “war on drugs” and the “return” to the US of oil allegedly stolen by the South American country.
Venezuela holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves, but, after years of mismanagement and corruption under the Chavista regime, and severe economic damage from US sanctions, its production falls far short of its potential.
While the US for months relied solely on the purported “war on drugs” to justify the military buildup and the attacks on boats that have killed 116 people, the Maduro regime has consistently said Trump was ultimately after Venezuela’s oil.
The US president acknowledged that this was part of his goals several weeks ago, when the US seized the first oil tanker and Trump announced a “total blockade” of sanctioned vessels, saying it would remain in place until Venezuela “returned” to the US “all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us”.
He later said: “We had a lot of oil there. As you know, they threw our companies out, and we want it back,” a remark widely understood as a reference to the Venezuelan government’s decision to nationalise the oil industry in 1976, which affected US companies such as Exxon and Mobil – which merged in 1999 – and Gulf Oil, now part of Chevron, the only US company still authorised to operate in the country.
In 2007, Maduro’s predecessor and mentor, Hugo Chávez, took control of the remaining oil operations still run under private arrangements. ExxonMobil and ConocoPhillips rejected the new contractual terms and, as a result, had their assets expropriated and were forced to leave the country. Chevron agreed to remain.
Original US indictment against Maduro from 2020 – full pdf
Here is a pdf embed of the indictment for Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro that dates from 2020, the first Trump administration. There will be a fresh indictment today.
Maduro and his wife will be transported to New York, says Trump
Donald Trump has confirmed that the Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are heading to New York. Trump told Fox News on Saturday that Maduro and his wife were taken to a ship after their capture by US forces and will be transported to New York.
Earlier, US attorney general Pam Bondi said the deposed Venezuelan leader and his wife would face criminal charges after an indictment in New York.
Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple will “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts”.
The US forces that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro on Saturday suffered a few injuries and no deaths, President Donald Trump told Fox News.
Trump also said that the US had waited four days for “better weather” for the operation.
Trump says US will be ‘very strongly involved’ in Venezuela oil industry
The United States is going to be “very strongly involved” in Venezuela’s oil industry after the operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, President Donald Trump told Fox News on Saturday.
He said:
We have the greatest oil companies in the world, the biggest, the greatest, and we’re going to be very much involved in it.
Independent conflict monitor Acled says that while the full extent of casualties in Venezuela remains unclear, the US strikes on the country already “stands out as the largest US military operation in Latin America since the 1989 invasion of Panama”.
Tiziano Breda, senior analyst for Latin America at Acled, has shared the following analysis:
The timing is not a coincidence – it appears to be aimed at undercutting the anniversary of (Nicolás) Maduro’s most recent term in office.
What happens next hinges on the response of Venezuela’s government and armed forces.
So far, they’ve avoided direct confrontation with US forces, but deployments on the streets point to efforts to contain unrest. A smooth transition remains unlikely, and the risk of resistance from pro-regime armed groups – including elements within the military and Colombian rebel networks active in the country – remains high.
Richard Luscombe
Richard Luscombe is a reporter for Guardian US based in Miami, Florida.
Democratic Florida congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, co-chair of the bipartisan congressional Venezuela democracy caucus, welcomed Nicolás Maduro’s capture, but said she was alarmed by Donald Trump’s decision to take action unilaterally.
She said in a statement:
The capture of the brutal, illegitimate ruler of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, who oppressed Venezuela’s people, is welcome news for my friends and neighbors who fled his violent, lawless, and disastrous rule.
However, cutting off the head of a snake is fruitless if it just regrows. Venezuelans deserve the promise of democracy and the rule of law, not a state of endless violence and spiraling disorder. My hope is it offers a passage to true democracy and liberation. This action offers beleaguered Venezuelans a chance to seat their true, democratically elected president, Edmundo González.
I’ll demand answers as to why Congress and the American people were bypassed in this effort. The absence of congressional involvement prior to this action risks the continuation of the illegitimate Venezuelan regime.
Sam Jones
Sam Jones is Madrid correspondent for the Guardian.
Yolanda Díaz, Spain’s leftwing labour minister and deputy prime minister, said the US had violated both the UN charter and international legality, adding:
We roundly condemn this imperialist attack on Venezuela. The world is less safe and less free since Trump and the international hate movement began acting with impunity. We will always be on the side of international law and peace.
Her comments came after Spain’s socialist prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, said his government was “closely monitoring” the situation in Venezuela. He added:
We call de-escalation and for responsible actions. International law and the principles of the UN charter must be respected.
Camille Rodríguez Montilla
Camille Rodríguez Montilla has shared reaction from on the ground in Caracas, Venezuela:
Ricardo Sans, an engineer who lives in the mountains surrounding Caracas, was woken up close to 2am by a loud noise:
I jumped to the ground because I heard a vibration. I now realize it might have been the rumble of the helicopters.
In the dark, he managed to see four to six helicopters flying over his house. His bedroom window overlooks Caracas city from a high point.
When I got out of bed, I saw smoke coming from two points that I could clearly distinguish: somewhere near El Cuartel de La Montaña, where Chavez’s remains rest, and Fuerte Tiuna, a military site.
I called my daughter and close friends in Margarita and Barquisimeto. I immediately thought it was what most of Venezuela had been waiting for, and it was indeed so.
In fear, I thought it might be a general chaos in the city, but then realized it seemed to be in specific spots.
Electricity and water are working correctly, but the internet failed briefly after. Since then, everything has been in absolute calm. I have only heard a hen and birds chirping since then.
He can still see a cloud over the city, especially towards the eastern part of Caracas.
Anays, a doctor, said:
About 2am, my husband woke me up because of the loud noises. Then, my close friend called to tell me that the electricity was no longer working at her place, nearby.
Anays’ friend lives in Cumbres de Curumo, an upper-middle-class neighbourhood in southern Caracas, where defence minister Vladimir Padrino López allegedly lives. Anays said:
After the explosions, we could still hear and see some of the planes flying over the city until at least 5 am.
Anays’ husband went to nearby supermarkets and pharmacies that were supposed to be open 24/7 to try to get some supplies:
Everything was closed; I’m guessing they were afraid of looting. Since then, the streets are empty, and everything is quiet.
Tiago Rogero
Chile’s leftwing president, Gabriel Boric, also condemned the US actions in Venezuela and issued a “call to seek a peaceful solution to the grave crisis affecting the country”.
Boric wrote on social media:
Chile reaffirms its commitment to the basic principles of international law, such as the prohibition of the use of force, non-intervention, the peaceful settlement of international disputes and the territorial integrity of states.
The Venezuelan crisis must be resolved through dialogue and with the support of multilateralism, not through violence or foreign interference.
Boric is due to hand over power in March to the far-right president-elect José Antonio Kast, who has repeatedly welcomed US military pressure on Venezuela.
Brazil’s Lula says US bombardment of Venezuela and capture of Maduro ‘cross an unacceptable line’
Tiago Rogero
Tiago Rogero is the Guardian’s South America correspondent, based in Brazil.
Brazil’s president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said the US bombardment of Venezuelan territory and the capture of the dictator Nicolás Maduro “cross an unacceptable line”, amounting to a “grave affront to Venezuela’s sovereignty and yet another extremely dangerous precedent” for the international community.
In a post on social media, the leftwing leader added that the action “recalls the darkest moments of (US) interference in Latin America and the Caribbean”, in an apparent reference to the dozens of US military interventions in the region – including Brazil, through its support for the 1964 coup that ushered in a bloody two-decade-long military dictatorship – over the past two centuries.
Lula said the international community, through the UN, “must respond vigorously to this episode”, adding that “Brazil condemns these actions” but remains available to “promote dialogue and cooperation”.
In recent months, the Brazilian president has repeatedly offered to act as a mediator between Donald Trump and Maduro. A few weeks ago, he called the Venezuelan dictator in the first gesture of rapprochement after their already distant relationship broke down when Brazil refused to recognise the result of the 2024 election, widely believed to have been rigged by Maduro.
Even so, Lula joined other leftwing leaders in the region, including Colombia’s Gustavo Petro and Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum, in openly criticising the US intervention. He wrote:
Attacking countries, in blatant violation of international law, is the first step towards a world of violence, chaos and instability, where the law of the strongest prevails over multilateralism.
Cuba’s president, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, has denounced “criminal attacks” by the US on Venezuela. In a post on X, he wrote:
Cuba denounces and urgently demands the reaction of the international community against the criminal attack by the US on Venezuela.
Our #ZonaDePaz is being brutally assaulted. State terrorism against the brave Venezuelan people and against Our America. Homeland or Death We Shall Overcome!
Below are some more images coming in via the newswires today:
Natricia Duncan
Natricia Duncan is the Guardian’s Caribbean correspondent.
Neighbouring Guyana said it is monitoring the situation. “The security architecture is fully active,” President Irfaan Ali told local media.
He added:
The Guyana defence force and the security forces are monitoring the situation and Guyanese should be reassured that the government is working to ensure the safety and security of our citizens.
Early on Saturday, Ali convened a meeting with the defence board, the national security architecture, regional commanders and other senior security officials.
Guyana and Venezuela have been in a tense, longstanding feud over land and maritime borders.
What we know so far
Here is the latest on what we know so far about US attacks on Venezuela and the capture of its leader Nicolás Maduro:
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US attorney general Pam Bondi says deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, will face criminal charges after an indictment in New York. Bondi vowed in a social media post that the couple will “soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts”.
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In a statement on X, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said Maduro is “under indictment for pushing drugs in the United States”. Republican US Senator Mike Lee said on Saturday that Rubio had told him that he “anticipates no further action in Venezuela now that Maduro is in US custody”.
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Earlier, Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that the US had “captured” Venezuela’s dictator, Maduro, and his wife, and flown them out of the South American country after a pre-dawn assault on Caracas and the surrounding region.
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Venezuela’s government accused the US of launching a series of attacks against civilian and military targets in the South American country, after explosions rocked its capital, Caracas, before dawn on Saturday.
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In a statement, Venezuela’s government urged citizens to rise up against the assault and said Washington risked plunging Latin America into chaos with “an extremely serious” act of “military aggression”. “The entire country must mobilise to defeat this imperialist aggression,” it added.
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Explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas in the early hours of Saturday. In its statement, Venezuela’s government confirmed that the city had come under attack, as well as three other states: Miranda, La Guaira and Aragua.
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Venezuela has accused the US of trying to “seize control” of country’s resources, in particular its oil and minerals. Th country has called on the international community to denounce what it called a flagrant violation of international law that put millions of lives at risk.
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In the early hours of Saturday the president of neighbouring Colombia, Gustavo Petro, called for an immediate emergency session of the UN security council, saying on social media that Venezuela had come under attack.
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UK prime minister Keir Starmer has reacted to Donald Trump’s military action in Venezuela saying: “The UK was not involved in any way in this operation.” He added that “we should all uphold international law”.
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Russia has demanded “immediate” clarification about the circumstances of the capture of Maduro during an attack ordered by Trump. Earlier, Venezuela’s vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez, said the US needed to provide “proof of life” for Maduro.
