US President Donald Trump yesterday offered an expansive vision of Washington’s role in Venezuela following the dramatic military operation that saw US forces storm Caracas and abduct President Nicolás Maduro.
In a lengthy press conference, Trump praised the raid as a “spectacular assault” and outlined political, economic, and military steps that he said would reshape the country’s future.
Trump hailed the overnight strike on what he described as a “heavily fortified military fortress in the heart of Caracas” as one of the most powerful demonstrations of American military might “since World War II.” He emphasized that Venezuelan defenses had been “rendered powerless” within hours, noting that no US service members were killed and no equipment lost despite the scale of the operation.
Oil and economic plans
Beyond the battlefield, Trump made clear that Venezuela’s vast oil reserves were central to Washington’s next moves. He said US energy giants would soon enter the country to rebuild its “badly broken infrastructure” and revive production. “The oil business in Venezuela has been a bust for a long period of time,” Trump said. “We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies – the biggest anywhere in the world – go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the infrastructure, and start making money for the country.”
Maduro to face trial in US
Trump confirmed that Maduro and his wife were being held aboard a US naval vessel in the Caribbean and would be transferred to New York to face trial. He accused the Venezuelan leader of crimes ranging from narcotics trafficking to terrorism, saying US courts had “overwhelming evidence” against him. “It’s both horrible and breathtaking,” Trump said, alleging Maduro had waged “a ceaseless campaign of violence, terror and subversion against the United States of America.”
US to oversee Venezuela’s transition
The president also announced that Washington would temporarily administer Venezuela until a “safe transition” of power could be arranged. “We’re going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” Trump said. He insisted that the US would not allow another leader to take over only to replicate “the same situation we had for the last long period of years.”
Prepared for further military action
While declaring the initial operation a success, Trump warned that US forces were ready to stage a “second and much larger attack” if necessary. “We actually assumed that a second wave would be necessary but it’s probably not,” he said. “The first attack was so successful that we probably don’t have to do a second.”
Trump’s remarks came as international condemnation of the raid intensified. The United Nations, France, China, Russia, and several Latin American governments denounced the abduction of Maduro as a violation of international law and Venezuela’s sovereignty. Even Washington’s allies expressed unease, with the EU warning that no solution to Venezuela’s crisis could be “imposed from outside.”
Despite the backlash, Trump portrayed the operation as a turning point. “No nation in the world could achieve what America achieved yesterday,” he said. “It was an amazing thing.”
