#us-venezuela-relations

#us-venezuela-relations

President Donald Trump said Tuesday on his social media site that "Interim Authorities" in Venezuela would be selling 30 million to 50 million barrels of "High Quality" oil to the U.S. at its market price. "I have asked Energy Secretary Chris Wright to execute this plan, immediately," Trump posted on Truth Social. "It will be taken by storage ships, and brought directly to unloading docks in the United States."

I was briefed this morning on the U.S. military capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, as well as their planned imprisonment in federal custody here in New York City. Unilaterally attacking a sovereign nation is an act of war and a violation of federal and international law. This blatant pursuit of regime change doesn't just affect those abroad, it directly impacts New Yorkers, including tens of thousands of Venezuelans who call this city home.

Democratic lawmakers have largely condemned US President Donald Trump's actions on Saturday against the South American country and its leader, saying they violate international law and lack necessary Congressional approval. list of 3 itemsend of list Members of Trump's Republican Party, meanwhile, have defended the attacks as part of the administration's push to stem drug trafficking into the US. Here's a look at some of the reactions from US lawmakers.

Since Trump took office for his second term, he has put Maduro squarely in his sights, pursuing a maximum pressure campaign against the Venezuelan regime. He accused Maduro of being behind destabilising activity in the Americas, including drug trafficking and illegal immigration to the US. In July, the US announced a $50m (37m) bounty on Maduro's head, accusing him of being one of the largest narco-traffickers in the world.

President Donald Trump on Saturday said that the airspace "above and surrounding" Venezuela should be considered as "closed in its entirety," an assertion that raised more questions about the U.S. pressure on Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. His government accused Trump of making a "colonial threat" and seeking to undermine the South American country's sovereignty. The White House did not respond to questions about what Trump posted on his Truth Social platform,

U.S. President Donald Trump held a telephone conversation last week with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, The New York Times revealed on Friday. The call, seen as a gesture of rapprochement amid heightened hostilities between the two countries, included the possibility of a future meeting between the two leaders on U.S. soil; if so, it would mark a significant shift in relations between Washington and Caracas.

QUITO, Ecuador - The Trump administration will continue to identify and kill foreign drug smugglers without the consent of their home countries, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters Thursday. But such actions may not be necessary if the smugglers come from friendly nations that cooperate with the United States, Rubio added. "For cooperative governments, there's no need because those governments are going to help us," the top U.S. diplomat said during a visit to Ecuador's capital. "They're going to help us find these people and blow them up, if that's what it takes."

The US attack on the Venezuelan boat on Tuesday came just a few days after news reports circulated about US warships advancing into Venezuelan waters. Last month, The New York Times reported that Trump had signed a secret directive instructing the Pentagon to use military force against certain Latin American drug cartels designated by the US as foreign terrorist organisations.