that the president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, and the president of the United States, Donald Trump, maintained, have gradually gotten to know each other since last November 21, in the midst of the crisis over the US military deployment in the Caribbean, they decided to pick up their phones and talk for less than 15 minutes.
During that conversation, according to the agency ReutersMaduro would have tried to negotiate his departure from Venezuela in exchange for Washington accepting three conditions: if the US guaranteed him a total amnesty, both him and his family; withdraw current sanctions on a hundred senior Venezuelan officials -many accused of violating human rights, corruption or drug trafficking- and that the vice president Delcy Rodríguez assumes control of an interim Government until new elections are held.
Donald Trump rejected practically the entire package of Maduro’s demands. Even so, he offered the Chavista president the possibility of leaving Venezuela for the destination of his choice and gave him an ultimatum: the deadline to leave the country with his family was ending last Friday, one day before the US president announced the.
Nicolás Maduro’s offer and the conversation with Donald Trump come after months of US pressure, with attacks on alleged drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean, with threats from and the declaration of (a structure that includes the Venezuelan president himself) as a terrorist organization. Caracas always denied these accusations and attributed Washington’s strategy to an attempt to control Venezuela’s natural resources.
Maduro accuses the US of “psychological terrorism”
While awaiting the conclusions of the highest-level meeting that was held this Monday at the White House to decide the next steps to take with Venezuela, in Caracas, Maduro reinforced the leadership of the ruling party with a new political bureau of twelve Chavismo leaders. He did so while denouncing the US military deployment in the Caribbean, which, he said, exceeds 22 weeks and constitutes “psychological terrorism.”
The Venezuelan president has valued this period as a test in which the entire country has defended “the love of the country” and in which they have had time to complete a phase to train the Militias, the civilian component of the Bolivarian National Armed Forces, ensuring that Venezuela has achieved an unprecedented level of preparation and that will allow them to guarantee a “free homeland” for future generations.
In that same scenario, Maduro also announced the creation of a new political bureau, in charge of directing “at the highest level” the political and social forces of Chavismo. Among its members are the names of Diosdado Cabello, Delcy Rodríguez, Cilia Flores and Jorge Rodríguez, who will accompany the president in this new stage.
The day also coincided with more problems in Venezuela’s air connections. The recommendation made a few days ago by the US Federal Aviation Administration to exercise extreme caution when flying over Venezuela or the Caribbean has caused a cascade of cancellations. This Monday, Iberia, Plus Ultra and Air Europa suspended new operations until December 31. Air Europa will not operate until December 12; At Plus Ultra they extended the cancellation of their flights until Thursday the 4th and the Venezuelan Laser announced that it will not be able to fly to Madrid on December 3 as it depends on Plus Ultra. Latam Colombia also paralyzed its connections “until further notice” by decision of the National Institute of Civil Aeronautics and due to the lack of safety conditions to operate.
Washington defends the legality of the second attack
The US defended this Monday the legality of the second attack launched in September against the survivors of a boat in the Caribbean Sea. White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt assured that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not give the direct order and pointed to the head of the Special Operations Command, Admiral Frank Bradley, as responsible for the operational decision. “Admiral Bradley was the one who gave the order for a second attack and was fully authorized to do so,” he stated before reading a statement in which he defended that he acted within the legal framework and with the objective of “eliminating the threat” against the United States.
Leavitt insisted that the Trump Administration considers the groups involved as “foreign terrorist organizations” and maintained that the president has the authority to act against alleged drug traffickers when, according to Washington, they represent a risk to American security. He denied, however, that Hegseth had ordered to avoid the existence of survivors in this type of operation.
Asked about the legal basis for the death of the survivors, the spokesperson argued that the attack was carried out “in self-defense”, in international waters and in accordance with the law of armed conflict. The Defense Department’s Law of War Manual explicitly prohibits hostilities aimed at preventing survivors, but Leavitt maintained that the operation complied with current regulations and deferred to the Pentagon for additional clarification.
Hegseth later expressed his “unconditional support” for Admiral Bradley and praised his performance in both the September operation and subsequent missions. He did so in a message published on the social network
According to information from American media such as The Washington Post and The Intercept, the second attack occurred after at least two occupants of the boat survived the first bombing. Sources cited by both media place this operation as the first in a series that, added to those carried out in the eastern Pacific under the same arguments, would have left at least 83 dead. In one of the October attacks, two survivors were rescued and returned to Colombia and Ecuador. Leavitt stated that he was not aware of any changes in the procedures applied to these people.
