WASHINGTON – U.S. President Donald Trump announced Jan. 3 that Venezuela was under temporary American control following the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro by U.S. forces in a raid. Maduro was transported to New York to face drug-trafficking charges.
Trump Administration Takes Control of Venezuela
“We will run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” Trump said during a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. “We can’t take a chance that someone else takes over Venezuela who doesn’t have the interests of Venezuelans in mind.”
Trump stated that major U.S. oil companies would move into Venezuela, which holds the world’s largest oil reserves, to refurbish the country’s degraded oil infrastructure, a process experts estimate could take years.
Critics questioned the administration’s focus on oil, raising concerns about framing Maduro’s capture and recent missile strikes on alleged drug boats as a law enforcement operation targeting drug shipments to the U.S.
U.S. Special Forces captured Maduro in or near one of his safe houses during an overnight operation that disrupted electricity in parts of Caracas and targeted military installations, Trump said.
Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were transported to a U.S. Navy ship offshore before being flown to the U.S. on the evening of Jan. 3. A plane arrived at Stewart International Airport, approximately 97km north-west of New York City, where U.S. personnel boarded the aircraft after landing.
A Justice Department official confirmed Maduro’s arrival in New York. A subsequent video showed a convoy arriving at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn under heavy police guard.
Maduro, who has been indicted on U.S. charges including narco-terrorism conspiracy, is scheduled to appear in Manhattan federal court on Jan. 5. His wife also faces charges, including cocaine importation conspiracy.
The extent of how Trump plans to oversee Venezuela remains unclear, as U.S. forces do not currently control the country and Maduro’s government has shown no willingness to cooperate with Washington.
Trump did not specify who would lead Venezuela after the U.S. relinquishes control. Venezuelan Vice-President Delcy Rodriguez appeared on Venezuelan television, denouncing the capture as a kidnapping and asserting that Maduro remains “the only president of Venezuela.” A Venezuelan court subsequently ordered Rodriguez to assume the position of interim president.
Some legal experts have questioned the legality of seizing the head of state of a foreign power. Democrats, claiming they were misled during recent briefings, have demanded a plan for the future.
The streets of Venezuela were largely calm on Jan. 3, with soldiers patrolling some areas and small pro-Maduro crowds gathering in Caracas. Some citizens expressed relief. “I’m happy, I doubted for a moment that it was happening because it’s like a movie,” said Carolina Pimentel, 37, a merchant in Maracay. “It’s all calm now, but I feel like at any moment everyone will be out celebrating.”
During the press conference, accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, Trump did not provide specifics on how the U.S. would govern Venezuela given the continued functioning of its government and military. He indicated that Rubio and Hegseth would oversee the country.
Trump stated he was open to deploying U.S. forces to Venezuela, saying, “We’re not afraid of boots on the ground.” The removal of Maduro, who has been criticized as a dictator during his more than 12 years in power, could create a power vacuum in the country, which borders Colombia, Brazil, Guyana, and the Caribbean.
Trump publicly dismissed the possibility of working with opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, stating she lacks support and respect within Venezuela.
Trump’s comments about a potential military presence echoed rhetoric surrounding past interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan, both of which resulted in American withdrawals after years of costly occupation and casualties.
Trump previously criticized such interventions, calling the Iraq invasion “a big fat mistake” in 2016 and stating in 2021 he was “especially proud to be the first president in decades who has started no new wars.”
Prior to Jan. 3, the U.S. had not directly intervened in the region to this extent since the 1987 invasion of Panama to depose military leader Manuel Noriega over drug-related allegations.
The U.S. has leveled similar charges against Maduro, accusing him of running a “narco-state” and rigging the 2024 election. Maduro, a 63-year-old former bus driver handpicked by Hugo Chavez, has denied these claims, alleging Washington’s intent to seize his nation’s oil reserves.
Trump’s actions recall the Monroe Doctrine of 1823, asserting U.S. influence in the region, and “gunboat diplomacy” from the early 1900s. Trump alluded to this, suggesting an updated doctrine might be called the “Don-roe Doctrine.”
While some Latin American governments oppose Maduro and his alleged electoral fraud, Trump’s claims of controlling Venezuela and exploiting its oil resources evoke memories of past U.S. interventions in Latin America, which are generally opposed by governments and citizens in the region.
Argentina’s President Javier Milei lauded Venezuela’s “new freedom,” while Mexico condemned the intervention and Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said it crossed “an unacceptable line.” Russia and China, both supporters of Venezuela, also criticized the U.S. action.
China’s foreign ministry stated its firm opposition to “such hegemonic behaviour by the US, which seriously violates international law, violates Venezuela’s sovereignty, and threatens peace and security in Latin America and the Caribbean.”
Trump asserted that a U.S. occupation “won’t cost us a penny” as the United States would be reimbursed from Venezuela’s oil revenues, a topic he repeatedly emphasized during the Jan. 3 press conference.
The notion of a country’s oil reserves funding an American invasion is reminiscent of the 2003 Iraq war, where U.S. officials predicted the cost would be covered by Iraq’s assets, including its oil. However, the actual cost of the U.S. involvement in Iraq is estimated to be at least $2 trillion.
Trump’s focus on foreign affairs provides ammunition for Democrats to criticize him ahead of midterm congressional elections in November, where control of both houses of Congress is at stake. Republicans currently hold narrow majorities in both chambers. Opinion polls indicate voters are primarily concerned with high domestic prices, not foreign policy.
Trump also risks alienating some of his supporters, who have backed his “America First” agenda and oppose foreign interventions. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, expressed concern on social media, stating, “This is what many in MAGA thought they voted to end. Boy were we wrong.”
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