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U.S. Removes Venezuelan President Maduro
U.S. forces seized Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in January 2026, leading to Vice President Delcy Rodríguez assuming the presidency. The Trump administration has supported resumed U.S. oil operations in Venezuela but has not prioritized a political transition. Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado met with U.S. officials in March 2026 to discuss democratization prospects.
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In January 2026, U.S. custody awaiting prosecution on drug trafficking charges. The operation resulted in Maduro's removal without U.S. fatalities, and Venezuelan officials did not respond militarily. Maduro's vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, subsequently became president of Venezuela.
Leadership Transition and U.S.
No timeline for future elections has been announced. U.S. President Donald Trump stated in March 2026 that the situation in Venezuela was positive under Rodríguez's leadership. The U.S. has issued licenses for American oil companies to resume operations in the country, and the White House reported receiving tens of millions of barrels of Venezuelan oil.
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2025, visited the White House in March 2026. Secretary of State Marco Rubio to seek information on U.S. plans for political transition in Venezuela. During the visit, Trump and Rubio advised Machado not to return to Venezuela at that time.
Earlier, in January 2026, Machado had given her Nobel medal to Trump. It references historical examples in Venezuela where the removal of leaders like General Juan Vicente Gómez in 1935 and Marcos Pérez Jiménez in 1958 led to eventual democratic transitions.
Rodríguez, the Venezuelan government has released some political prisoners and replaced certain cabinet members previously loyal to Maduro. However, the state's security and repressive structures established under Maduro remain in place. The article describes the U.S. action as differing from past interventions in Latin America, such as in the Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Panama, where regimes were fully removed.
