Washington DC / Palm Beach / Caracas, January 3 (ANI): The United States on Saturday carried out extensive military strikes against Venezuela that culminated in the capture of incumbent President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who were subsequently flown out of the country, US President Donald Trump confirmed in a series of statements and interviews. The operation, conducted in conjunction with US law enforcement and the US armed forces, has sharply escalated tensions between Washington and Caracas while triggering strong international reactions.
In a post on Truth Social, President Trump announced the operation, stating, “The United States of America has successfully carried out a large scale strike against Venezuela and its leader, President Nicolas Maduro, who has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the Country. This operation was done in conjunction with U.S. Law Enforcement. Details to follow. There will be a News Conference today at 11 A.M., at Mar-a-Lago. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DONALD J. TRUMP.”
Trump later told Fox News that he had watched the operation unfold in real time and described it as unlike anything he had ever seen. “I’ve never seen anything like this. I was able to watch it in real time, and I watched every aspect of it,” he said, praising the professionalism, leadership, and training of US forces. He added that military personnel rehearse and practice at a level unmatched by any other country, calling the operation “an amazing thing, an amazing job that these people have done.”
According to Trump, the operation was originally planned four days earlier but was delayed due to weather conditions. “We were going to do it four days ago but the weather was not perfect. The weather has to be perfect… It was highly guarded, like a fortress actually. We had nobody killed, we lost no aircraft,” he said. Trump further noted that while there were a few injuries, there were no deaths on the US side, calling that outcome “really amazing” given the complexity of the manoeuvre involving aircraft, helicopters, fighter jets, and coordinated landings.
US Attorney General Pamela Bondi later announced that Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been indicted in the Southern District of New York. In a post on X, she said Maduro has been charged with Narco-Terrorism Conspiracy, Cocaine Importation Conspiracy, Possession of Machineguns and Destructive Devices, and Conspiracy to Possess Machineguns and Destructive Devices against the United States. “They will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts,” Bondi said, thanking President Trump for demanding accountability and praising the US military for carrying out what she described as an incredible and highly successful mission to capture the two alleged international narco-traffickers.
US Vice President JD Vance also defended the action and hailed the special operators involved. In a series of posts on X, Vance said that throughout the process it was made clear that drug trafficking must stop and that stolen oil must be returned to the United States. Responding to criticism that the action was illegal, he wrote, “Maduro has multiple indictments in the United States for narcoterrorism. You don’t get to avoid justice for drug trafficking in the United States because you live in a palace in Caracas.”
Trump, speaking further to Fox News, said the US action sends a clear signal that America will no longer be pushed around. He accused Venezuela under Maduro of doing “terrible things” to the United States, including sending criminals, drug lords, and individuals from prisons and mental institutions. “We are losing three hundred thousand people a year. We don’t lose that much in a war,” Trump said, framing the operation as a response to the drug crisis affecting the US.
In subsequent remarks from Palm Beach, Florida, Trump described the strikes as “one of the most stunning, effective, and powerful displays of American military might and competence in American history.” He said overwhelming American military power—air, land, and sea—was used in a spectacular assault against what he described as a heavily fortified military fortress in the heart of Caracas. Trump added that no nation in the world could have achieved what the United States accomplished.
The US President also said that following Maduro’s capture, the United States would run Venezuela “until such time as we can do a safe, proper, and judicious transition.” He stated that the goal was peace, justice, and liberty for the Venezuelan people and that the US could not risk another leader simply taking over and continuing the same policies. Trump further announced that major US oil companies would invest billions of dollars to repair Venezuela’s broken oil infrastructure and restart production.
Earlier in the day, Trump released the first photograph of Nicolas Maduro in custody, posting an image on Truth Social showing Maduro on board the US warship USS Iwo Jima, accompanied by the caption, “Nicolas Maduro on board the USS Iwo Jima.”
Meanwhile, the Venezuelan government issued a strong statement condemning what it described as a “military aggression” by the United States against Venezuelan territory. The statement accused Washington of violating the United Nations Charter and threatening regional peace and stability. According to Caracas, US attacks targeted civilian and military locations in Caracas and the states of Miranda, Aragua, and La Guaira, constituting a flagrant breach of international law, including Articles 1 and 2 of the UN Charter.
The Venezuelan government alleged that the US action was aimed at seizing the country’s strategic resources, particularly oil and minerals, and imposing regime change. It said Venezuela had defended its sovereignty for more than two centuries and would do so again, invoking the legacy of Simon Bolivar. The statement said the Bolivarian National Armed Forces had been deployed nationwide, national defence plans were activated, and a State of External Commotion was declared. Caracas also said it would raise the issue before the UN Security Council, the UN Secretary-General, CELAC, and the Non-Aligned Movement, while reserving the right to legitimate self-defence under Article 51 of the UN Charter.
The developments came amid reports of loud explosions across Caracas early Saturday, which reportedly caused power outages in several neighbourhoods. Colombian President Gustavo Petro called for an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council, saying the international legality of the US action against Venezuela must be established.
International reaction also included sharp criticism from Russia. The Russian Foreign Ministry described the US strike and the capture of Maduro as an act of armed aggression, calling the pretexts used to justify the action untenable and expressing deep concern over what it said was ideologised animosity prevailing over pragmatic engagement.
As the situation continues to unfold, the capture of Nicolas Maduro has marked a dramatic escalation in US–Venezuela relations, with Washington asserting it is bringing a “narco-terrorist” leader to justice, while Caracas and several international actors warn of violations of international law and threats to regional stability. (ANI)
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