Overview
- Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, appeared in Manhattan federal court and pleaded not guilty to U.S. drug and terrorism charges.
- Venezuela’s Delcy Rodríguez was sworn in as interim president in Caracas and remains under U.S. and European sanctions.
- Speaking aboard Air Force One, President Trump said Cuba is "ready to fall," accused Colombia’s Gustavo Petro of enabling cocaine trafficking, and warned Mexico to curb cartels or face U.S. action.
- Spain, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Uruguay issued a joint statement condemning the U.S. operation in Venezuela as a threat to regional peace and international law.
- Trump has branded his approach the "Don-roe Doctrine" and has highlighted Venezuela’s oil reserves alongside counternarcotics objectives as core to his strategy.