“Colombia is very sick, too, run by a sick man, who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States, and he’s not going to be doing it very long,” Trump said.
Rubio says US not at war with Venezuela, as Maduro set to appear in New York court on Monday
AFP via Getty ImagesMaduro, who leads the United Socialist Party of Venezuela and has been in power since 2013, has frequently been accused of repressing opposition groups and silencing dissent in Venezuela, at times with the use of violence.
He is widely seen by opponents within his country as well as by foreign governments as having illegitimately won Venezuela’s 2024 election.
Venezuela’s left-wing leader and his wife, Cilia Flores, were captured at their compound and flown to the US, as part of a dramatic special forces operation in the early hours of Saturday that also saw strikes on military bases.
The couple have since been charged with weapon and drug offences and are set to appear at a court in New York on Monday.
Maduro has denied being a cartel leader and has accused the US of using its “war on drugs” as an excuse to try to depose him and get its hands on Venezuela’s oil.
While US officials have said that no American troops were harmed in the attacks, Venezuela’s Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino said a “large part” of Maduro’s security team and “soldiers and innocent civilians” were killed in the US operation.
When asked why congressional authorisation wasn’t sought before the US operation in Venezuela, Rubio told ABC it “wasn’t necessary because this wasn’t an invasion”.
He described it as a “law enforcement operation”, and said Maduro was arrested on the ground by FBI agents. Continue reading…