Trump says US will be ‘very strongly involved’ in Venezuela’s oil industry after military attack | Donald Trump

Donald Trump has promised that the United States will “rule” Venezuela until an orderly transition of power is achieved, but has offered few details after toppling the country’s leader, Nicolás Maduro, with a bold military offensive.

Speaking at a press conference at his home at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on Saturday, the president hailed the overnight operation that captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, as “an attack that people have not seen since the Second World War.”

But the dramatic intervention was condemned by Democrats on Capitol Hill and many leaders around the world as the most dangerous example of US imperialism since the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Trump, who campaigned for the presidency on promises to end foreign wars, did nothing to allay these fears when he told reporters that the United States would temporarily take control of Venezuela and its oil infrastructure.

“We will govern the country until we can make a safe, convenient and reasonable transition,” the president said. “We cannot risk Venezuela being taken over by someone else who does not have the best interest of the Venezuelan people in mind… In fact, we will continue this until a proper transition is achieved.”

Maduro, a 63-year-old former bus driver who was handpicked by the dying Hugo Chavez to replace him in 2013, accused the United States of seizing control of his country’s world’s largest oil reserves.

“We’re going to have our very large U.S. oil companies, the largest in the world, come in, spend billions of dollars, repair the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure, and start bringing money into the country, and we’re prepared to launch a second, much larger attack if necessary,” Trump said at the press conference.

It remains unclear how Trump plans to govern Venezuela. Despite a nightly operation that knocked out power in part of Caracas and captured Maduro at or near one of his safe houses, US forces have no control over the country and Maduro’s government appears to still be in power.

While Trump said that the United States would govern Venezuela “with a group” and “appoint various people” in charge, he pointed behind him to the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, and the chief of staff, General Dan “Razin” Caine.

He did not make a statement but said he was open to the idea of ​​sending U.S. forces to Venezuela. The President said, “We are not afraid of boots on the ground if necessary. In fact, our boots were on the ground at a very high level last night. We are not afraid of this. We see no harm in saying this, but we will ensure that the country is governed properly. We are not doing this in vain.”

Referring to Venezuela’s oil reserves, Trump said a US invasion “won’t cost us a dime” because the US would be paid back from “money coming out of the ground.”

But the remarks are likely to cause consternation among some of Trump’s die-hard supporters, who are haunted by the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and embrace his “America first” pledge to stop sending troops abroad to fight and die.

Trump also said Rubio had been in contact with Venezuelan vice president Delcy Rodríguez, whom Maduro was reportedly sworn in after his capture. Trump quoted Rodriguez as saying, “We’ll do whatever you need.” “He really has no choice,” he added.

Maduro was indicted in US federal court in 2020 on narco-terrorism and other charges related to running what prosecutors called a scheme to send tons of cocaine to the US through the so-called Cartel de los Soles. He has always denied the allegations.

Before the attack, Trump had demanded a blockade of Venezuelan oil, expanded sanctions against the Maduro government, and killed more than 110 people by carrying out more than two dozen attacks on ships that the US claimed were involved in drug trafficking.

Explosions shook Caracas around 2 a.m. on Saturday; Explosions, planes and black smoke were seen for about 90 minutes. The Venezuelan government said the attacks also took place in the states of Miranda, Aragua and La Guaira.

The operation involved a joint force of more than 150 aircraft and special operations teams and was accomplished without any U.S. casualties or loss of equipment. The arresting force reached Maduro’s compound and came under fire, responding with “overwhelming force.” Maduro was caught trying to reach a steel-reinforced safe room but was unable to close the door in time.

Maduro and his wife were taken by helicopters to the amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima in the Caribbean before being transferred to New York. Trump said: “Illegitimate dictator Maduro was the ringleader of a vast criminal network responsible for the deaths of countless Americans. Maduro and his wife will soon face the full force of American justice and be tried on American soil.”

The United States has not intervened so directly in its backyard since it invaded Panama 37 years ago to oust military leader Manuel Noriega over similar allegations.

Venezuela’s ruling “Chavismo” movement, named after Maduro’s revered predecessor Hugo Chavez, said civilians and military personnel died in Saturday’s attacks but did not give figures.

The opposition, led by recent Nobel peace prize winner María Corina Machado, has yet to comment but has been saying for 18 months that it has won the 2024 elections and has a democratic right to seize power.

But Trump said Machado did not have “support at home or respect at home” when asked if he would be a potential interim leader right now.

The mood was triumphant at the press conference held in Florida on Saturday. Defense minister Pete Hegseth said: “Nicolás Maduro had his chance, just as Iran had its chance – until they couldn’t and he couldn’t. He messed up and found out.”

Rubio insisted that it was impractical to give Congress advance notice of such a sensitive operation. But Democrats strongly condemned the intervention. Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer said: “The fact that Trump now plans to rule Venezuela should strike fear in the hearts of all Americans. The American people have seen this before and paid the devastating price.”

Bernie Sanders, an independent senator from Vermont, said Trump and his administration “have spoken openly about control of Venezuela’s oil reserves, the largest in the world. This is pure imperialism. It is a reminder of the darkest chapters of US interventions in Latin America, which have left a terrible legacy. It will and should be condemned by the Democratic world.”

Venezuela’s allies Russia, Cuba and Iran were quick to criticize the attacks as a violation of sovereignty. Argentinian President Javier Milei praised Venezuela’s new “freedom,” Mexico condemned the intervention, and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said the intervention crossed an “unacceptable line.”