President Donald Trump has said the U.S. will be "very strongly involved" in Venezuela's oil industry following a US military operation that captured President Nicolás Maduro and removed him from the country, marking a dramatic escalation in Washington's campaign against the Venezuelan government.
Speaking to Fox News on Saturday, Trump confirmed that Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were seized by US forces during overnight strikes on Caracas and other regions, and are now being transported to New York aboard a US warship. Maduro will face federal criminal charges in the United States, Trump 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," Trump told the media outlet.
'Brilliant operation'
In separate remarks to the New York Times, Trump described the operation as a "brilliant" mission that he watched unfold in real time. He said US special operations forces broke through reinforced steel doors "in a matter of seconds" and claimed no American troops were killed, though some were injured when a helicopter was hit.
The US attorney general, Pam Bondi, said in a statement posted on X that Maduro has been indicted in the Southern District of New York on charges including narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy and weapons offences. The indictment was originally filed in 2020.
"They will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts," Bondi said.
State of emergency in Venezuela
Explosions were heard across Caracas at around 2am local time, with residents reporting low-flying aircraft and fires near military and government installations, including the Fuerte Tiuna complex. Venezuela's defence minister said US strikes hit both civilian and military targets in Caracas and in the states of Miranda, Aragua and La Guaira, and acknowledged casualties without providing figures.
In response, Venezuela's government declared a state of emergency, accused the US of carrying out an "extremely serious military aggression" and urged citizens to mobilise against what it called an imperialist attack.
Venezuela's vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez, said in a state broadcast that the government initially did not know where Maduro and his wife were and demanded "immediate proof of life". Senior ruling-party figures said the couple were captured inside a residence located within a military base, describing the operation as a kidnapping.
Legal and political aims
Vice-president JD Vance praised the raid in a statement posted on X, calling it a "truly impressive operation". He said Trump had offered Maduro "multiple off-ramps" but was clear that "the drug trafficking must stop, and the stolen oil must be returned to the United States".
Trump also told Fox News that Washington is now making decisions about Venezuela's leadership and warned remaining Maduro loyalists that they face a "bad future" if they resist. He indicated the US would look to opposition leader María Corina Machado as part of a transition.
International reaction
The US operation prompted swift condemnation from several governments. France said the action violated international law. UK prime minister Keir Starmer said in remarks to reporters that Britain was not involved and that "we should all uphold international law". Russia and China demanded clarification on Maduro's whereabouts and condemned the use of force, while Brazil's president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, said the strikes crossed "an unacceptable line".
Colombia called for an emergency meeting of the UN security council and began preparing for a potential influx of Venezuelan refugees.
Uncertain aftermath
US officials have said they do not anticipate further military action now that Maduro is in custody, but Venezuela remains under a state of emergency as armed forces deploy across the country and political authority remains unclear.
As Trump openly links the intervention to Venezuela's oil industry and frames the operation as a decisive blow against drug trafficking and authoritarian rule, the episode is already being viewed as one of the most controversial and consequential foreign policy actions of his second presidency.
