Trump says US now answerable for Venezuela state of affairs after developments

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President Donald Trump mentioned the U.S. is now answerable for Venezuela following the arrest of longtime chief Nicolás Maduro, outlining a plan to run the nation, rebuild its financial system and delay elections till what he described as a restoration is underway.

Trump made the remarks throughout a gaggle with reporters as questions mounted about who's governing Venezuela after a U.S. military operation led to Maduro’s arrest early Saturday.

"Don’t ask me who’s in cost as a result of I’ll offer you a solution, and it’ll be very controversial," Trump instructed a reporter.

He was then requested to make clear, to which Trump replied, "It means we’re in cost."

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Venezuela's Vice President Delcy Rodríguez addresses the media in Caracas, Venezuela, on March 10, 2025. (Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/Reuters)

Trump was additionally requested whether or not he had spoken straight with Venezuela’s newly sworn-in Vice President Delcy Rodríguez amid uncertainty about how the brand new authorities is functioning and what function the U.S. is enjoying.

Whereas Trump mentioned he has not personally spoken with Rodríguez, he advised coordination is already underway between U.S. officers and the brand new management.

Throughout the gaggle, Trump repeatedly portrayed Venezuela as a failed state that can't instantly transition to democratic rule, arguing the nation’s infrastructure and financial system had been devastated by years of mismanagement.

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Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro greets his supporters throughout a rally in Caracas on Dec. 1, 2025. (Pedro Mattey/Anadolu through Getty Pictures)

He in contrast Venezuela’s collapse to what he claimed would have occurred to the U.S. had he misplaced the election, utilizing the comparability to underscore his argument for intervention.

"We've got to do one factor in Venezuela. Convey it again. It’s a lifeless nation proper now," Trump mentioned. "It’s a rustic that, frankly, we might have been if I had misplaced the election. We might have been Venezuela on steroids."

Trump mentioned rebuilding Venezuela will heart on restoring its oil industry , which he mentioned had been stripped from the U.S. beneath earlier governments, leaving infrastructure decayed and manufacturing crippled.

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A coast guard boat of the Venezuelan Navy operates off the Caribbean coast on Sept. 11, 2025. (Juan Carlos Hernandez/Reuters)

He pressured that American oil firms – not U.S. taxpayers – will finance the reconstruction, whereas the U.S. oversees the broader restoration.

"The oil firms are going to go in and rebuild this method. They’re going to spend billions of {dollars}, they usually’re going to take the oil out of the bottom, and we’re taking again what they promote," Trump mentioned. "Bear in mind, they stole our property. It was the best theft within the historical past of America. No one has ever stolen our property like they've. They took our oil away from us. They took the infrastructure away. And all that infrastructure is rotted and decayed."

Trump mentioned elections will not take place till the nation is stabilized, arguing that dashing a vote in a collapsed state would repeat previous failures.

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President Donald Trump speaks to reporters aboard Air Drive One whereas touring from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Tokyo, Japan, Monday, Oct. 27, 2025. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)

He mentioned the U.S. will handle Venezuela’s recovery process , together with addressing inflation, income loss and infrastructure collapse.

"We’re going to run all the pieces," Trump mentioned. "We’re going to run it, repair it. We’ll have elections on the proper time."

When requested whether or not the operation in Venezuela was motivated by oil pursuits or amounted to regime change, Trump rejected each characterizations and as an alternative solid the trouble as a part of a broader security doctrine .

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President Donald Trump shared a photograph of captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro aboard the usIwo Jima after strikes on Venezuela, on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Donald Trump through Reality Social)

He tied the intervention to long-standing U.S. coverage within the Western Hemisphere, invoking historic precedent.

"It’s about peace on Earth," Trump mentioned. "You gotta have peace, it’s our hemisphere. The Monroe Doctrine was crucial when it was executed."

Trump went on to criticize previous presidents for failing to implement that doctrine, arguing his administration has restored it as a guideline.

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"And different presidents, lots of them, they overpassed it," Trump added. "I didn’t. I didn’t lose sight. However it actually is. It’s peace on Earth."

Brokers with the Drug Enforcement Administration arrived on the West thirtieth Road Heliport for the arrival of captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, in New York. (Stefan Jeremiah/AP Photograph)

Trump mentioned the U.S. function in Venezuela will in the end deal with rebuilding the nation whereas caring for Venezuelans displaced by years of financial collapse.

He mentioned that features Venezuelans at the moment residing within the U.S., lots of whom he mentioned have been compelled to flee.

"We’re gonna cherish a rustic," Trump mentioned. "We’re going to deal with, extra importantly, of the individuals, together with Venezuelans which can be residing in our nation that have been compelled to depart their nation, they usually’re going to be taken superb care of."

Trump made clear the feedback on Venezuela have been a part of a broader overseas coverage outlook, utilizing the gaggle to concern warnings about instability elsewhere within the Western Hemisphere and abroad. He advised the U.S. is ready to reply forcefully to threats he mentioned might endanger American safety pursuits.

Trump singled out Colombia, describing the nation as a rising safety concern and accusing its management of enabling large-scale drug trafficking into the U.S.

"Colombia’s very sick too, run by a sick man who likes making cocaine and promoting it to america, and he’s not going to be doing it very lengthy," Trump mentioned.

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When requested whether or not that meant U.S. motion, Trump replied, "It sounds good to me."

Trump additionally addressed ongoing protests in Iran, warning that the U.S. is intently monitoring the state of affairs and would reply if the Iranian authorities makes use of violence towards demonstrators.

"We’re watching it very intently," he mentioned. "If they begin killing individuals like they've previously, I feel they’re going to get hit very exhausting by america."