WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday posted a map graphic on his Truth Social platform depicting Venezuela with an inset American flag and the label &quot;51st State.&quot; The post -- published while Trump was en route to China for a high-stakes summit -- comes a day after Venezuela&#39;s interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, said her country had &quot;never&quot; considered becoming the 51st state, even after US forces captured deposed leader Nicolas Maduro in January. Earlier on Monday, Trump told Fox News that he was considering making the South American country a new state. Rodriguez, for her part, has overseen a thawing of relations with the United States since taking over the country, passing reforms that reopened Venezuela&#39;s mining and oil sectors to foreign companies -- especially from the US. The Venezuelan opposition has demanded elections, while Rodriguez -- when asked on May 1 about the prospects of a new vote -- said she &quot;didn&#39;t know&quot; and that it would happen &quot;sometime.&quot;

Americas

The post -- published while Trump was en route to China for a high-stakes summit -- comes a day after Venezuela's interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, said her country had "never" considered becoming the 51st state, even after US forces captured deposed leader Nicolas Maduro in January.

Trump posts graphic of Venezuela as 51st US state

MIAMI: The first direct flight between the United States and Venezuela in seven years took off Thursday, a new sign of a thaw after Washington deposed leftist leader Nicolas Maduro. The American Airlines flight took off at 10:26 am (1426 GMT) from Miami en route to Caracas, where the United States has resumed diplomatic relations after years of tension. The first flight&#39;s manifest was dominated by officials and journalists, with senior officials from Washington set to fly to Caracas to meet the government, a prospect unthinkable just months ago. Representatives of the city of Miami, a hub for Latin Americans that sees itself as a gateway to the region, greeted passengers at the gate, as did the Venezuelan ambassador to Washington, Felix Plasencia. The flight is scheduled to land more than three hours later at Simon Bolivar Airport, better known as Maiquetia. The inaugural flights are featuring a special Venezuelan menu including corn pancakes known as cachapas and a Venezuelan-style chicken salad, according to the airline. Some 1.2 million Venezuelans live in the United States, and the thaw is expected to boost the US business presence in the South American nation, which has the world&#39;s largest proven oil reserves. But President Donald Trump has also been moving aggressively to remove Venezuelans from the United States, terminating a program that shielded migrants from deportation back to the crime-ridden nation. US forces on January 3 carried out a deadly raid in Caracas, snatching longtime US nemesis Maduro and flying him and his wife to New York to face charges of drug trafficking, which they deny. Maduro was replaced by his vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, who has largely cooperated with the United States despite her ideological background. Trump has voiced satisfaction with her policies toward US companies and has tried to enforce compliance by threatening violence. Venezuela has moved to open its oil and mining sectors to private investment. Trump in turn has started an easing of sanctions on Venezuela, with measures imposed personally on Rodriguez dropped.<h2 style="line-height: 2;"> </h2><h2 style="line-height: 2;">Daily links</h2>American Airlines subsidiary Envoy Air will run the daily round-trip flight between Caracas and Miami. The company said it plans to start a second daily round-trip flight starting May 21. American Airlines, which is based in Texas and has a large network in Latin America, started flights to Venezuela in 1987 and carried the&nbsp;highest number of passengers between the two countries. It ended flights in 2019 as relations deteriorated, with the United States and other Western and Latin American nations declaring Maduro to be illegitimate after an election marred by irregularities. The State Department continues to call on Americans to reconsider travel to Venezuela due to widespread crime but in March ended its blanket warning against any travel. The new flight comes despite trouble in the aviation industry, which has been hit hard by a sharp rise in oil prices after the United States and Israel attacked Iran.

The first direct flight from the United States to Venezuela in seven years departed for Caracas on Thursday from Miami, an AFP reporter at the airport said.

First US-Venezuela direct flight in seven years leaves Miami

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ISLAMABAD: American military forces have intercepted and boarded the <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; float: none; display: inline !important;" id="isPasted">Panamanian-flagged<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: source-sans-pro, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 20px; font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-color: initial; display: inline !important; float: none;" id="isPasted">&nbsp;oil tanker Veronica III in the Indian Ocean, according to a statement posted on X by the Department of War on Sunday. The department said US forces tracked the vessel across international waters before carrying out what officials described as a lawful maritime boarding operation within the Indo-Pacific Command&rsquo;s area of responsibility. Video released alongside the statement shows armed personnel approaching the tanker at sea and climbing aboard. <div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2022997870061011067&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2F&sessionId=917738aeac499d224108cc4f065a7ee29452fcc3&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 696px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div> Officials described the action as a &ldquo;right-of-visit, maritime interdiction and boarding&rdquo; conducted without incident.&nbsp;According to the statement, the pursuit began in the Caribbean and continued across thousands of miles before the ship was stopped in the Indian Ocean. &ldquo;The vessel tried to defy President Trump&rsquo;s quarantine &mdash; hoping to slip away,&rdquo; the department said. &ldquo;We tracked it from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean, closed the distance, and shut it down.&rdquo; The Pentagon intercepted the Aquila II in similar fashion about a week ago. In December, Trump ordered a &quot;blockade&quot; of sanctioned oil vessels heading to and from Venezuela. At least nine ships have been seized thus far. But those ships seized in recent months make up only a tiny fraction of the total number of sanctioned &quot;shadow fleet&quot; vessels operating worldwide to evade sanctions, which a senior US Coast Guard officer said number up to 800. The Veronica III left Venezuela on January 3 -- the same day that US special forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in a raid -- carrying around 1.9 million barrels of oil, <a data-fr-linked="true" href="//TankersTrackers.com" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">TankersTrackers.com</a> said. The ship is listed under US sanctions relating to Iran, according to the website of the US Treasury&#39;s Office of Foreign Asset Control. Officials did not immediately confirm whether the tanker was seized or redirected following the boarding. Still, they described the move as part of a broader campaign to disrupt illicit oil trade networks. &quot;By land, air, or sea, we will find you and deliver justice,&quot; officials warned, signaling continued operations against what they termed &quot;illicit actors and their proxies&quot; in the maritime domain.

US forces boarded the Panama-flagged tanker Veronica III in the Indian Ocean after tracking it from the Caribbean, accusing it of violating sanctions on Venezuelan and Iranian oil, the Department of War said in a statement on X.

US forces board tanker in Indian Ocean after Venezuela blockade evasion

CARACAS: The new head of the US diplomatic mission to Venezuela arrived in the country on Saturday and was welcomed by the South American country&#39;s foreign minister, as relations gradually warm after the ouster of Nicolas Maduro in a US military raid.&nbsp;&quot;I just arrived in Venezuela. My team and I are ready to work,&quot; Laura Dogu said in a post in Spanish on the US Embassy of Venezuela&#39;s X account, accompanied by photos of her disembarking a plane.&nbsp;Dogu, a former ambassador to Nicaragua and Honduras, was named last week as US charge d&#39;affaires in Venezuela. A charge d&#39;affaires is the head of a diplomatic mission in the absence of a full ambassador.&nbsp;Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil received Dogu after her arrival.&nbsp;Their meeting was part of an effort by Caracas to &quot;define a roadmap on questions of bilateral interest&quot; and address existing differences via diplomacy, the foreign ministry said in a statement.&nbsp;The United States has already sent a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/rubio-expects-us-diplomatic-presence-to-return-in-venezuela-soon" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">mission</a>&nbsp;to assess the embassy in Caracas, which has been largely unoccupied for the past six years.&nbsp;It was shuttered in 2019 shortly after Washington and other major powers declared Maduro to be illegitimate following a flawed election. Maduro then severed diplomatic relations with Washington.&nbsp;US forces attacked Venezuela on Jan. 3, capturing Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, and taking them to New York for trial on US-issued drug trafficking charges.&nbsp;President Donald Trump says he is now&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/interim-venezuela-leader-to-visit-us" target="_blank">running</a>&nbsp;Venezuela and has allowed Maduro&#39;s vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, to be interim leader so long as she toes Washington&#39;s line -- in particular, granting US access to Venezuela&#39;s vast oil reserves.&nbsp;Since 2019, the US embassy has been largely deserted, other than a few local employees.&nbsp;Since last year, a charge d&#39;affaires for Venezuela, John McNamara, has been based in neighboring Colombia.&nbsp;McNamara travelled with other US diplomats to Caracas days after Maduro&#39;s ouster to assess &quot;a potential phased resumption of operations&quot; at the embassy.&nbsp;Trump has said he was working &quot;really well&quot; with Rodriguez, and a US official has said Rodriguez would visit the United States soon.&nbsp;Reforms in her first month at the helm of the country have included a proposal for a mass amnesty, plans to close the country&#39;s notorious El Helicoide prison in Caracas, and the passage of a new law opening the country&#39;s oil sector to private investment.&nbsp;US authorities on Friday announced that all Americans known to be held prisoner in Venezuela had been released.&nbsp;For years, Venezuela has routinely arrested foreigners and domestic opposition actors on a range of charges from spying to plotting attacks -- charges critics dismiss as fabricated.&nbsp;The Foro Penal rights group counts more than 700 political prisoners in Venezuela. Many of them are held at El Helicoide, which has been denounced as a torture center by the opposition and activists.&nbsp;Rodriguez has ordered it converted into a &quot;social, sports, cultural and commercial center.&quot;

Laura Dogu arrives in Caracas. Venezuela’s foreign minister welcomed her as both countries work to restore ties and reopen the US embassy after Maduro’s ouster.

New head of US mission in Venezuela arrives as ties warm

WASHINGTON:&nbsp;Secretary of State Marco Rubio voiced hope Wednesday for cooperation with Venezuela after the US toppling of Nicolas Maduro and expected a reopening soon of the US embassy there, but brandished force if the interim leader is defiant. In prepared testimony for a Senate hearing, Rubio had written that Delcy Rodriguez, who was vice president and now acting president, &quot;is well aware of the fate of Maduro.&quot; &quot;Make no mistake, as the president has stated, we are prepared to use force to ensure maximum cooperation if other methods fail,&quot; read the prepared testimony, referring to President Donald Trump. Asked about his prepared testimony during his appearance, Rubio took a more measured tone. &quot;I can tell you right now with full certainty we are not postured to, nor do we intend or expect to, have to take any military action in Venezuela,&quot; Rubio told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. &quot;The only military presence you&#39;ll see in Venezuela is our Marine guards at an embassy,&quot; he said. Trump has demanded that Venezuela, which has the world&#39;s largest proven oil reserves, cooperate with US oil companies. The State Department last week named a senior diplomat, Laura Dogu, as the top diplomat for Venezuela, and earlier sent a mission to assess the embassy in Caracas. &quot;We think very quickly we&#39;ll be able to open a US diplomatic presence on the ground,&quot; Rubio told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The restored US mission &quot;will allow us to have real-time information&quot; and improve interaction with Venezuelan authorities as well as &quot;members of civil society, the opposition,&quot; Rubio said. The United States shuttered its embassy in 2019 shortly after Washington and other major powers declared Maduro to be illegitimate following an election marred by reports of irregularities. &#39;One dictator for another&#39;&nbsp;US commandoes raided Caracas on January 3 and seized Maduro, a longtime leftist nemesis of Washington, and his wife, Cilia Flores. The couple were flown to New York to stand trial on US-issued charges of drug trafficking, which they deny. Senator Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that the operation has cost at least hundreds of millions of dollars, &quot;and yet the Maduro regime is essentially still in power.&quot; &quot;Her cooperation appears tactical and temporary, and not a real shift in Venezuela&#39;s alignment. In the process, we&#39;ve traded one dictator for another,&quot; Shaheen said. Senator Chris Van Hollen, another Democrat, pointed to Trump&#39;s meetings with oil executives and questioned if he ordered the attack for personal benefit. &quot;By any measure, this is the most corrupt administration in American history,&quot; he said. Venezuelan officials say more than 100 people died, both Venezuelans and Cubans who unsuccessfully tried to protect Maduro. Rubio called the tactical operation a success as no Americans died. Trump indicated hours after deposing Maduro that he favored working by pressuring Rodriguez rather than seeking to empower Venezuela&#39;s democratic opposition, dismissing its leader, Maria Corina Machado, as a &quot;very nice woman&quot; who did not command &quot;respect.&quot; But Trump sounded more favorable to Machado after she visited him at the White House and presented him with her Nobel Peace Prize, which she won last year despite Trump loudly coveting the prestigious honor. Rubio will hold a closed-door meeting on Wednesday with Machado, the State Department said. Rubio &mdash; a Cuban-American and fervent critic of Latin American leftists &mdash; had, as a senator, championed Machado&#39;s opposition forces. Rodriguez insisted Sunday that she has had enough of orders from Washington. But she has also worked to encourage US oil investment and said Tuesday that the United States was unblocking sanctioned Venezuela funds.&nbsp;

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US expects to reopen a diplomatic presence in Venezuela soon after Maduro’s ouster, appointing Laura Dogu to lead efforts and restore engagement with authorities, civil society and opposition.

Rubio expects US diplomatic presence to return in Venezuela soon

CARACAS:&nbsp;Venezuela&#39;s interim president on Friday dismissed businessman Alex Saab, accused of working as a front man for deposed leader Nicolas Maduro, from his post as minister of industry. In a Telegram message, Delcy Rodriguez announced the ministry would be combined with a commerce ministry and thanked Saab -- a Colombian-born Venezuelan &ndash; &ldquo;for his service to the Homeland; he will be taking on new responsibilities.&rdquo; Pressure from Washington&nbsp;The change comes amid <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/us-plans-for-venezuelan-oil-postmaduro-ouster" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">pressure from Washington</a> following the Jan. 3 US military raid that ousted Maduro. Saab, released in 2023 as part of a prisoner exchange with the United States, was appointed to office in 2024 by Maduro. A confidant of then-president Maduro, Saab was arrested during a 2020 refueling stopover in Cape Verde due to an Interpol notice over accusations he had served as a money launderer for the socialist leader. He was extradited to the United States, where he and his business partner, Alvaro Pulido, were charged with running a network that exploited food aid destined for Venezuela. Hero&rsquo;s welcome&nbsp;Upon his release, Saab was given a hero&#39;s welcome in Caracas.&nbsp; He assumed office as minister of industry in Oct. 2024. Saab&#39;s dismissal is among the latest key changes to Venezuela&#39;s government by Rodriguez since the US <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/deposed-venezuelan-leader-pleads-not-guilty-in-us-court" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">capture of Maduro</a> and his wife, Cilia Flores.

Change comes amid pressure from Washington following the Jan. 3 US military raid that ousted Maduro; Saab, released in 2023 as part of a prisoner exchange with the US, was appointed to office in 2024 by Maduro.

Venezuela interim leader sacks industry minister, a Maduro ally

WASHINGTON: Venezuelan <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/out-of-hiding-venezuelas-machado-vows-to-return-to-end-tyranny" style="color:#0073e6;">opposition leader</a> Maria Corina Machado said on Friday her country is starting a &quot;true transition&quot; to democracy and will become free with support from the United States and President Donald Trump. Trump, however, has sidelined Nobel laureate Machado and backed former vice president Delcy Rodriguez as interim leader of the oil-rich country following the January 3 US military operation that seized president Nicolas Maduro. &quot;We are definitely now into the first steps of a true transition to democracy,&quot; Machado said during an event in Washington, adding that this will have an &quot;immense impact in the lives of all Venezuelans&quot; as well as around the region and the world. &quot;Venezuela is going to be free, and that&#39;s going to be achieved with the support of the people of the United States and the president, Donald Trump,&quot; Machado said. Her party has presented evidence that Maduro stole the 2024 election &mdash; claims supported by Washington and much of the international community. But Trump has said that Machado does not have enough support among Venezuelans, and opted to stick with Rodriguez, so long as she toes the line on US access to Venezuela&#39;s vast oil reserves. Machado said Friday that Rodriguez is &quot;following orders&quot; rather than acting of her own will. The opposition leader&#39;s remarks came a day after US Central Intelligence Agency chief John Ratcliffe met Rodriguez in Caracas. Ratcliffe traveled to Venezuela to &quot;deliver the message that the United States looks forward to an improved working relationship,&quot; a US administration official said on condition of anonymity. Nobel medal&nbsp;In an indication of that improved relationship, a US deportation flight carrying 231 Venezuelans landed in Caracas on Friday, the first since Maduro&#39;s overthrow. Trump has made cracking down on undocumented immigrants a major part of his second term, carrying out sweeping immigration raids and deporting migrants. <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/who-is-mara-corina-the-2025-nobel-peace-prize-winner" style="color:#0073e6;">Machado</a>, 58, on Thursday&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/venezuelas-machado-presents-trump-with-nobel-prize" style="color:#0073e6;">presented </a>her Nobel Peace Prize medal to Trump in a bid to win over the US president. &quot;He deserves it,&quot; she said. &quot;And it was a very emotional moment, I decided to present the Nobel Peace Prize medal on behalf of the people of Venezuela.&quot; It was not immediately clear if Trump &mdash; who said Friday that he and Machado will &quot;be talking again&quot; &mdash; kept the award following their White House lunch. The Norwegian Nobel Committee says its prizes cannot be transferred. Trump had campaigned hard to win last year&#39;s Nobel Peace Prize, claiming that he stopped eight wars since taking office, but it <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/venezuelas-maria-corina-machado-wins-2025-nobel-peace-prize" style="color:#0073e6;">went </a>to Machado instead. Trump and Rodriguez had their first telephone call on Wednesday, and the White House said he &quot;likes what he&#39;s seeing&quot; from her. Rodriguez said, however, that her government will stand up to Washington. &quot;We know they are very powerful...we are not afraid to confront them diplomatically, through political dialogue,&quot; she said Thursday. Rodriguez was delivering Maduro&#39;s state of the nation address to parliament while the long-time authoritarian leader is in a New York jail facing drug trafficking charges. By contrast, Machado, who campaigned for years to end leftist Maduro&#39;s rule, was greeted by jubilant supporters in Washington.

Venezuelan opposition leader says Venezuela is “going to be free,” will be achieved with the “support of the people of the United States and the president, Donald Trump.”

Machado says Venezuela beginning 'transition' to democracy

WASHINGTON: Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said Thursday she &quot;presented&quot; her Nobel Peace Prize medal to Donald Trump, in a bid to win over the US president who had sidelined her since the overthrow of Nicolas Maduro.&nbsp;Her &quot;wonderful gesture of mutual respect,&quot; as Trump called it Thursday, comes after the Republican said the award should have gone to him instead &mdash; and after he refused to back Machado following the Jan. 3 US military operation to capture Maduro.<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-1" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=eyJ0ZndfdGltZWxpbmVfbGlzdCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOltdLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2ZvbGxvd2VyX2NvdW50X3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9iYWNrZW5kIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19yZWZzcmNfc2Vzc2lvbiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZm9zbnJfc29mdF9pbnRlcnZlbnRpb25zX2VuYWJsZWQiOnsiYnVja2V0Ijoib24iLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X21peGVkX21lZGlhXzE1ODk3Ijp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRyZWF0bWVudCIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3Nob3dfYmlyZHdhdGNoX3Bpdm90c19lbmFibGVkIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19kdXBsaWNhdGVfc2NyaWJlc190b19zZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdXNlX3Byb2ZpbGVfaW1hZ2Vfc2hhcGVfZW5hYmxlZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdmlkZW9faGxzX2R5bmFtaWNfbWFuaWZlc3RzXzE1MDgyIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRydWVfYml0cmF0ZSIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfbGVnYWN5X3RpbWVsaW5lX3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9mcm9udGVuZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9fQ%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2012006221340164338&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=bb01fe2a5e3773c6e841501d25aedd002d3b28ba&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 826px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;"></iframe></div></div>&quot;He deserves it, and it was a very emotional moment,&quot; Machado later told broadcaster Fox News in an interview.&nbsp;Despite the gesture, Trump has backed Maduro&#39;s vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, over Machado &mdash; so long as she toes Washington&#39;s line, particularly on access to Venezuela&#39;s vast oil reserves.&nbsp;&ldquo;I presented the president of the United States the medal of the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/venezuelas-maria-corina-machado-wins-2025-nobel-peace-prize" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nobel Peace Prize</a>,&rdquo; Machado told reporters outside the US Capitol, where she met with lawmakers after having lunch with Trump at the White House.&nbsp;Machado, 58, said it was &ldquo;recognition for his unique commitment to our freedom.&rdquo;&nbsp;It was not immediately clear if Trump actually kept the award following the closed-door meeting.&nbsp;The Norwegian Nobel Committee says its prizes cannot be transferred. &lsquo;Not afraid&rsquo;Trump had campaigned hard to win last year&#39;s Nobel Peace Prize for what he says are his efforts to stop eight wars. Instead, it went to Machado, who appeared in Oslo last month to collect her prize &mdash; following a daring escape from Venezuela by boat &mdash; and then dedicated it to Trump.&nbsp;Venezuela&#39;s opposition has argued and presented evidence that Maduro stole the 2024 election from the candidate of Machado&#39;s party, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia &mdash; claims supported by Washington.&nbsp;But Trump has said that Machado does not have enough support among Venezuelans, and opted to stick with former Maduro loyalist Rodriguez.&nbsp;Trump and Rodriguez had their first telephone call on Wednesday, and the White House said Thursday he &ldquo;likes what he&#39;s seeing&rdquo; with Venezuela&#39;s interim leaders.&nbsp;Rodriguez said, however, that on Thursday her government was &ldquo;not afraid&rdquo; of a diplomatic clash with Washington.&nbsp;&ldquo;We know they are very powerful. We know they are a lethal nuclear power ... we are not afraid to confront them diplomatically, through political dialogue,&rdquo; said Rodriguez.&nbsp;Rodriguez was delivering Maduro&#39;s state of the nation address to parliament while the toppled Venezuelan leader is in a New York jail facing drug trafficking charges.&nbsp;By contrast, Machado, who campaigned for years to end leftist Maduro&#39;s rule, was greeted by jubilant supporters as she left the White House.&nbsp;White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said as the lunch started that Machado was a &ldquo;remarkable and brave voice for many of the people of Venezuela.&rdquo;&nbsp;But while Leavitt said Trump was &ldquo;committed to hopefully seeing elections in Venezuela one day,&rdquo; she would not give a timeline.&nbsp;&lsquo;Wonderful gesture&rsquo;US President Donald Trump heaped praise on Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado on Thursday for presenting him with &quot;her Nobel Peace Prize for the work I have done,&quot; after they met at the White House.&nbsp;&ldquo;She is a wonderful woman who has been through so much,&rdquo; Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform, adding that Machado presenting him with the medal was &ldquo;such a wonderful gesture of mutual respect.&rdquo;

President Donald Trump meets with Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado in the Oval Office on January 15, 2026, where she presents him with her Nobel Peace Prize medal.

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado says she 'presented' her Nobel Peace Prize medal to Donald Trump, adding he 'deserves' it.

Trump 'presented' Nobel Peace Prize

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump urged Cuba on Sunday to &quot;make a deal&quot; or face unspecified consequences, warning that the flow of Venezuelan oil and money to Havana would now stop.&nbsp;&quot;There will be no more oil or money going to cuba - zero!&quot; Trump said on his Truth Social channel. &quot;I strongly suggest they make a deal, before it is too late.&quot;&nbsp;His remarks come a week after US forces seized Venezuela&#39;s authoritarian leader Nicolas Maduro in a nighttime operation in Caracas that killed dozens of Venezuelan and Cuban security forces.&nbsp;Earlier on Sunday, Trump reposted a message suggesting that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio could become the president of now communist-ruled Cuba.&nbsp;Trump shared that post with the comment: &quot;Sounds good to me!&quot;&nbsp;In his own post soon afterwards, Trump said that &quot;Cuba lived, for many years, on large amounts of oil and money from Venezuela. In return, Cuba provided &#39;Security Services&#39; for the last two Venezuelan dictators, but not anymore!&quot;&nbsp;&quot;Most of those Cubans are DEAD from last week&#39;s U.S.A. attack, and Venezuela doesn&#39;t need protection anymore from the thugs and extortionists who held them hostage for so many years.&quot;&nbsp;Under a US trade embargo, Havana since 2000 has increasingly relied on Venezuelan oil provided as part of a deal struck with Maduro&#39;s predecessor Hugo Chavez.

US President Donald Trump warned Cuba to “make a deal” or face consequences, saying Venezuelan oil and money to Havana would stop following US actions against Venezuela’s leadership.

Trump tells Cuba to 'make a deal, before it is too late'

HAVANA: The capture by US forces of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and the killing in the operation of 32 Cubans assigned to protect him represent a major blow for the island&#39;s revered intelligence services, experts say.&nbsp;Fearful of betrayal by dissenters within Venezuela&#39;s ranks, the leftist Maduro, like his late mentor Hugo Chavez sourced his security detail in communist-ruled Cuba.&nbsp;But the Cubans proved little match for the US special forces sent by helicopter to snatch Maduro from a military compound after US jets had pummeled Venezuela&#39;s air defenses.&nbsp;Of the 32 Cubans killed, along with 23 Venezuelan troops, 21 were from the Cuban interior ministry, which oversees the intelligence services, officials said.&nbsp;The remaining 11 were from Cuba&#39;s military.&nbsp;Experts consulted by AFP agreed that the key to the seamless execution of the US operation meticulously prepared for months, in complete secrecy was the element of surprise.&nbsp;But former Venezuelan military officer Jose Gustavo Arocha of the Center for a Secure Free Society, a US think tank specializing in defense issues, also suggested that Cuba had misjudged the threat.&nbsp;Cuban intelligence &quot;convinced the Maduro regime and its security agencies that the United States would never attack on Venezuelan territory,&quot; Arocha said.&nbsp;Former US intelligence officer Fulton Armstrong, who is now a Latin America researcher at American University in Washington, also pointed to intelligence failures.&nbsp;Chief among them, he said, was the failure to anticipate the attack and then to detect helicopters entering Venezuela&#39;s airspace.&nbsp;&quot;Even a five- or 10-minute warning would have made a massive difference for the guards and for Maduro,&quot; the former CIA agent said.&nbsp;US forces however, had a major advantage in the form of stealth drones, used to monitor the Venezuelan leader&#39;s movements in real time, as well as more advanced weapons and combat gear.&nbsp;Paul Hare, a former British ambassador to Cuba and Venezuela, argued that Cuban intelligence underestimated US access to &quot;insider cooperation in Venezuela,&quot;&nbsp; an informant within Maduro&#39;s camp.&nbsp;Citing sources close to the operation, The New York Times reported that a CIA source within the Venezuelan government revealed Maduro&#39;s location.&nbsp;The United States had issued a reward of $50 million for information leading to his capture.&nbsp;Aura of invincibility&nbsp;For decades, the Cuban secret service, trained during the Soviet era by the KGB, enjoyed a reputation for invincibility.&nbsp;Besides having foiled some 600 assassination attempts against late leader Fidel Castro, Cuba was reputed for its ability to infiltrate foreign intelligence services and recruit high-ranking informants, particularly Americans.&nbsp;The most recent case to come to light was that of Victor Manuel Rocha, a former US diplomat sentenced in 2024 to 15 years in prison after working for over four decades for the Cuban state.&nbsp;But Cuba &quot;didn&#39;t adequately read the Trump administration,&quot; said Arocha, noting that the administration&#39;s National Security Strategy unveiled in December clearly articulated Trump&#39;s goal of asserting US dominance over Latin America.&nbsp;Washington had regularly denounced Cuba&#39;s role, since the 2000s, in the Venezuelan security apparatus.&nbsp;The routine response from Caracas and Havana was that Cuba, in return for Venezuelan oil supplies, provided its ally with doctors and humanitarian workers.&nbsp;Arocha argued that &quot;so many years... doing the same thing successfully&quot; blinded the Cubans to Trump&#39;s willingness to defy diplomacy and international law, so they did not see him coming.&nbsp;The Republican leader stunned the world by ordering the capture of the Venezuelan president in what his administration said was a law enforcement operation that did not require authorization from Congress.&nbsp;&quot;All the capabilities of Cuban intelligence were blocked for the first time in the region... because their traditional methods became irrelevant against this new decision-making style,&quot; Arocha said.

US forces captured Nicolas Maduro in a surprise operation that killed Cuban and Venezuelan guards. Experts say Cuban intelligence failed to anticipate the attack, underestimated US intentions, and was outmatched by secrecy, technology, and insider information.

Articles tagged with "Venezuela"