Trump says Cuba is ‘ready to fall’ after Maduro’s capture

President Donald Trump predicted late Sunday that Cuba was “ready to fall” after US forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and warned Havana could no longer rely on Caracas for security and oil.

Trump said Cuba’s fate is now directly tied to the ouster of Maduro and the collapse of Venezuela’s ability to finance its allies in the region.

Asked if the United States was considering action in Cuba, Trump replied: “I think it will fall. I don’t think we need any action. It looks like it will fall. It will fall.”

The president’s comments during a press lark with reporters aboard Air Force One came after Maduro and his wife were captured Saturday on charges tied to a narco-terrorism conspiracy. This bold operation sent shockwaves through allied governments in the region; Cuban officials called for demonstrations in support of Venezuela and accused the United States of violating sovereignty.

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U.S. officials say Cuban security forces are playing a central role in keeping Maduro in power. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Cuban agents were effectively running Venezuela’s domestic intelligence and security operations, including personally protecting Maduro and monitoring loyalty within the government.

Protesters gather outside the White House in Washington on Saturday, January 3, 2026, after the United States captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife in a military operation. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo)

“Those who protected Maduro were Cubans,” Rubio said. “He wasn’t protected by Venezuelan bodyguards. He had Cuban bodyguards.”

The Cuban government acknowledged Sunday that 32 Cuban soldiers and police officers were killed during the American operation in Venezuela; this was the first official death toll announced by Havana. Cuban state media said the officers were deployed at the request of Caracas and two days of national mourning were declared.

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Trump confirmed the Cuban losses as he returned to Washington.

“A lot of Cubans were killed yesterday,” he said. “There was a lot of death on the other side. There was no death on our side.”

Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores face a ‘worst-case scenario’ in US custody, with federal indictments on drug and weapons charges, experts say. (Juan BARRETO/AFP via Getty Images)

Trump also targeted neighbor Colombia, accusing its leadership of fueling drug smuggling into the US

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“Colombia is very sick, it’s run by a sick man who likes to make cocaine and sell it to the United States,” Trump said, adding that the country “won’t be doing this for a very long time.”

Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro speaks at a military ceremony commemorating the 200th anniversary of the presentation of the ‘Peruvian Sword’ to Simón Bolívar, Venezuela’s independence hero, in Caracas, Venezuela, on November 25, 2025. (Jesus Vargas/Getty Images)

Citing recent bans, he suggested that the United States was ready to take action against drug trafficking networks operating by land and sea.

Trump also revived his longtime focus on Greenland, arguing that the Arctic region is critical to U.S. security due to increased activities by Russia and China.

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“We need Greenland for national security,” Trump said. “Everywhere in Greenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships.”

Trump framed Saturday’s operation as part of a broader effort to reassert U.S. dominance in the Western Hemisphere, invoking the Monroe Doctrine and warning that hostile regimes could no longer rely on each other to survive.

Maduro is due to appear in federal court in New York on Monday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.