China kicks as US plans to ‘run’ Venezuela
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was in a New York jail Saturday, hours after American special forces seized and flew him out of his country, which Donald Trump said would come under effective US control. The US president’s announcement followed a lightning pre-dawn attack in which commandos grabbed Maduro and his wife while air strikes pounded […]
People celebrate at the Bolivar square in Bogota on January 3, 2026, after US forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro (LUIS ACOSTA /
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was in a New York jail Saturday, hours after American special forces seized and flew him out of his country, which Donald Trump said would come under effective US control.
The US president’s announcement followed a lightning pre-dawn attack in which commandos grabbed Maduro and his wife while air strikes pounded sites in and around Caracas.
A US government plane carrying Maduro landed at a military base shortly after nightfall, and he was transported by helicopter to New York City, where the couple were to be arraigned on drug trafficking and weapons charges.
The White House posted a video on X of Maduro, handcuffed and in sandals, escorted by federal agents through a US Drug Enforcement Administration facility in New York.
Trump said he was “designating people” from his cabinet to be in charge in Venezuela, but gave no further details.
In another surprise, Trump indicated US troops could be deployed, saying Washington is “not afraid of boots on the ground.”
But he appeared to reject the possibility of the country’s opposition taking power and said he could work instead with Maduro’s vice president, Delcy Rodriguez.
One aspect that became clearer was Trump’s interest in Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.
“We’re going to have our very large United States oil companies… go in, spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure,” he said.
“We’ll be selling large amounts of oil.”
Trump also said that “the embargo on all Venezuelan oil remains in full effect.”
Washington imposed economic sanctions on Venezuela in 2017, followed by oil sanctions two years later.
Venezuela produces just under a million barrels of crude oil a day, according to the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and sells most of it on the black market at steep discounts.
Trump claims Caracas is using oil money to finance “drug terrorism, human trafficking, murder and kidnapping.”
Venezuelan territory contains about 17 per cent of the world’s oil reserves, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA) in 2023, but is far from being a leading producer after years of mismanagement and corruption.
China, France, UN oppose US action
US-backed opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who won last year’s Nobel Peace Prize, posted on social media that “the hour of freedom has arrived.”
She called for the opposition’s 2024 election candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, to “immediately” assume the presidency.
But Trump was surprisingly cold about expectations that Machado could become Venezuela’s new leader, saying she doesn’t have “support or respect” there.
Instead, he touted Rodriguez, saying “she’s essentially willing to do what we think is necessary to make Venezuela great again.”
Rodriguez poured cold water on that, demanding Maduro’s release and vowing to “defend” the country.
Late Saturday, Venezuela’s Supreme Court ordered Rodriguez to assume presidential powers “in an acting capacity.”
Reflecting the confusion, Trump indicated US involvement is likely for the long haul.
“We’re going to stay until such time as the proper transition can take place,” he said.
Venezuela’s ally China said it “strongly condemns” the US operation, and called for Maduro to be “immediately released.”
“The U.S.’s move is in clear violation of international law, basic norms in international relations, and the purposes and principles of the UN Charter,” China’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement Sunday.
Meanwhile, France warned that a solution cannot “be imposed from outside.”
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “deeply concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected.”
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), on its part, has reminded the international community about their obligation to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of each other, as enshrined in international law, especially Article 2 (4) of the United Nations Charter.
ECOWAS said it fully aligns itself with the statement the African Union issued on 3 January 2026, which calls for restraint and inclusive dialogue among the people of Venezuela.
Venezuelans’ welfare must prevail – Pope Leo
Pope Leo XIV on Sunday said Venezuelans’ welfare should prevail after the toppling of President Maduro and said the country’s sovereignty should be guaranteed.
Following his Angelus prayer in St Peter’s Square, the first US pope told the crowd that “the welfare of the beloved Venezuelan people must prevail over all other considerations”.
That must “lead to overcoming violence and embarking on paths of justice and peace, guaranteeing the sovereignty of the country, ensuring the rule of law enshrined in the Constitution, respecting the human and civil rights of each and every person, and working together to build a peaceful future of collaboration, stability, and harmony, with special attention to the poorest who are suffering because of the difficult economic situation”.