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US President Donald Trump has issued a new warning to Nicolas Maduro, saying it would be “smart” for the Venezuelan leader to resign, as Washington steps up its pressure campaign that has drawn sharp rebukes from Russia and China.
Speaking Monday at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Trump suggested he was ready to further escalate tensions after four months of mounting pressure on Caracas.
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Asked if the goal was to force Maduro from power, Trump told reporters: “Well, I think it probably would be… It’s up to him what he wants to do. I think it would be smart of him to do it. But again, we’ll figure it out.”
“If he wants to do something, if he plays hard, this will be the last time he will be able to play hard,” added the American leader.
Trump made his latest threat as the US Coast Guard pursued for a second day a third tanker which he described as part of a “dark fleet” that Venezuela is using to evade U.S. sanctions.
“It’s moving forward and we’ll get there eventually,” Trump said.
The American president also promised to maintain the two ships and the nearly 4 million barrels of Venezuelan oil that the Coast Guard has seized so far.
“Maybe we’ll sell it. Maybe we’ll keep it. Maybe we’ll use it in the strategic reserves,” he said. “We guard it. We guard the ships too.”
Maduro hits back
The campaign against Venezuela’s critical oil sector comes amid a major U.S. military buildup in the region with a stated mission to combat drug trafficking, as well as more two dozen strikes on suspected drug trafficking vessels in the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea near the South American nation.
Critics have questioned the legality of the attacks, which left more than 100 people dead.
Venezuela denies involvement in drug trafficking and insists Washington is seeking to overthrow Maduro to seize power. the country’s oil reserveswhich are the largest in the world.
Caracas condemned the US ship seizures, calling them acts of “international piracy”.
Maduro responded to Trump’s latest salvo hours later in a speech broadcast on state television, saying the US president would be better served if he focused on his own country’s problems rather than threatening Caracas.
“He would be better off in his own country on economic and social issues, and he would be better off in the world if he took care of his country’s affairs,” Mauro said.
The escalating rhetoric came ahead of a United Nations Security Council meeting scheduled for Tuesday to address the growing crisis.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov expressed “deep concern” about Washington’s operations in the Caribbean in a telephone conversation with his Venezuelan counterpart Yvan Gil, warning of potential consequences for regional stability and international shipping.
Moscow “reaffirmed its full support and solidarity with the Venezuelan leaders and people in the current context,” according to a statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry.
American blockade
China also condemned the latest US measures, calling them a “serious violation of international law”.
Lin Jian, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, said Beijing “opposes any action that violates the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter and undermines the sovereignty and security of other countries.”
“Venezuela has the right to develop independently and engage in mutually beneficial cooperation with other nations. China understands and supports Venezuela’s position in safeguarding its legitimate rights and interests,” he added.
Rubio last week rejected Moscow’s support for Caracas.
Washington, he said, “is not concerned about an escalation with Russia over Venezuela” because “they have their hands full in Ukraine.”
Relations between the United States and Russia have deteriorated in recent weeks, with Trump expressing frustration with Moscow over the lack of resolution on the war in Ukraine.
Gil, Venezuela’s foreign minister, meanwhile read a letter on state television, signed by Maduro and addressed to U.N. member countries, warning that the U.S. blockade would disrupt global oil and energy supplies.
“Venezuela reaffirms its vocation for peace, but also declares with absolute clarity that it is ready to defend its sovereignty, territorial integrity and resources in accordance with international law,” he said.
“However, we responsibly warn that these aggressions will not only impact Venezuela. The blockade and piracy against Venezuelan energy trade will affect oil and energy supplies, increase instability in international markets and hit the economies of Latin America, the Caribbean and the world, especially in the most vulnerable countries.”
