By Spy Uganda
Venezuela’s ousted president, Nicolás Maduro, is being held in a New York detention facility as he awaits prosecution on U.S. drug-related charges following a dramatic American military operation ordered by President Donald Trump. The raid, which Trump described as a decisive blow against an “illegitimate regime,” has sent shockwaves across Latin America and beyond.
Images of the 63-year-old leader blindfolded and handcuffed during his transfer to the United States have stunned Venezuelans and reignited memories of U.S. interventions in the region. Analysts say the operation marks Washington’s most controversial action in Latin America since the 1989 invasion of Panama. Maduro is scheduled to appear before a Manhattan court on Monday.
Trump announced that the United States would temporarily assume administrative control of Venezuela, including oversight of its vast oil reserves, the largest in the world. However, he offered no specifics on how the takeover would be managed.
“We will run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper, and judicious transition,” Trump said at a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort, praising what he called the “extraordinary extraction” of Maduro just moments before he reached a secure location.”
Despite Maduro’s detention, his political allies remain in control in Caracas and have denounced the operation as a “kidnapping.” Trump dismissed calls for opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado to assume power, arguing that she lacks sufficient domestic backing.
Machado, who was barred from contesting Venezuela’s 2024 presidential election, has insisted that her ally, Edmundo González, should take office. The opposition say González overwhelmingly won that vote.
Trump has accused Maduro of orchestrating large-scale drug trafficking into the United States and maintaining power through election fraud. Maduro has repeatedly denied the allegations. Venezuelan officials have demanded his immediate release, accusing Washington of pursuing an imperial agenda aimed at seizing the country’s oil and mineral wealth.
“There is only one president in Venezuela, and his name is Nicolás Maduro,” said Delcy Rodríguez, who assumed interim leadership following a court order in Caracas. Her statement directly contradicted Trump’s claim that she was open to cooperating with U.S. authorities.
As part of the U.S. plan, Trump said major American oil companies would return to Venezuela to rehabilitate the country’s deteriorating oil infrastructure, a task experts warn could take years. “We’re not afraid of boots on the ground,” he added, suggesting an open-ended military presence.
The path forward remains uncertain, particularly as Venezuelan courts have formally designated Rodríguez as interim president. Inside the country, uncertainty has triggered panic buying, with long lines forming at grocery stores and fuel stations.
The United Nations Security Council is scheduled to meet on Monday to discuss the U.S. action. Secretary-General António Guterres warned that the move sets “a dangerous precedent.” Russia and China, both key allies of Caracas, sharply criticized Washington.
“China firmly opposes such hegemonic behavior by the United States,” China’s foreign ministry said, arguing that the operation violates international law, undermines Venezuela’s sovereignty, and threatens regional peace.
Trump’s remarks about an extended military role have drawn comparisons to past U.S. interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan, both of which ended after years of costly occupation and heavy casualties. Trump insisted that a U.S. presence in Venezuela “won’t cost us a penny,” claiming expenses would be offset by revenue from oil production.
The move could also test Trump’s standing with his own political base, many of whom support his “America First” platform and have expressed opposition to prolonged foreign interventions.
