In the first official but sharp reaction from Caracas, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez announced on Saturday that the Venezuelan government and people are "ready to defend" the country's sovereignty and resources, following the surprise U.S. military operation carried out at dawn that resulted in the arrest of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.
Rodriguez's fiery remarks came during a live address broadcast on state television, where she asserted firmly: "We are ready to defend Venezuela, we are ready to defend our natural resources." This verbal escalation is a direct response to statements by US President Donald Trump , who explicitly indicated Washington's intention to "manage" Venezuela and exploit its vast oil reserves, a move Caracas considered a blatant declaration of colonial ambitions.
Context of the historical tension between Washington and Caracas
This momentous event cannot be separated from the context of years of deep-seated hostility between the United States and Venezuela. From the era of the late President Hugo Chávez to the current Maduro regime, Washington has imposed a series of crippling economic sanctions on Venezuela’s oil and financial sectors, accusing the government of corruption and human rights abuses. These tensions have escalated to unprecedented levels in recent years, with the U.S. Department of Justice formally indicting Maduro and other high-ranking officials on charges of “terrorism and drug trafficking,” and offering substantial financial rewards for information leading to their capture—a path that paved the way, both legally and politically, for this military operation.
Oil: The heart of the geopolitical conflict
Rodriguez's remarks about "defending natural resources" are of paramount importance given Venezuela's position in the global energy market. Venezuela possesses the world's largest proven oil reserves, making it a constant target for major powers. Observers believe that Trump's statement about "exploiting oil reserves" reinforces the narrative long propagated by the Venezuelan government: that US intervention is less about spreading democracy and more about controlling the Orinoco oil belt, especially given the volatility of global energy markets and the need to secure diversified supply sources.
Demands for release and the repercussions of the political vacuum
In closing, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez reaffirmed the constitutional legitimacy of the detained president, emphasizing that Nicolás Maduro is the country's "only president" and demanding his immediate release by the United States. She stated, "We demand the immediate release of Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. The only president of Venezuela is President Nicolás Maduro." This arrest opens the door to a host of uncertain scenarios regarding the future of governance in Venezuela and the anticipated reactions from Caracas's international allies, particularly Russia and China, raising the specter of a geopolitical escalation that could extend beyond Latin America.
