PresidentDonald Trumphas called the case against former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro "infallible," as the toppled leader is expected Monday to make his first appearance in federal court.
Maduro is set toappear in a Manhattan federal courtat noon local time for arraignment on a four-count indictment accusing him of leading a 25-year narco-terrorism conspiracy. It will be Maduro's first court appearance after he and his wife, Cilia Flores, were captured over the weekend in an overnight United States military attack on Venezuela and whisked away to New York.
"There is no endgame. We're just going to go through a slog of a trial," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Jan. 4. "We'll see how we do. The case is, it's infallible."
The toppled leader wasindicted on federal chargesof narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy and two illegal weapons counts based on allegations he helped ship tons of cocaine to the United States over decades. He was charged along with his wife, son and top members of his administration.
The surprise attack marked a significant escalation against the South American country aftermonths of rising tensions, threats and oil tanker seizures. The military operation has drawn support from Trump's allies but also bipartisan criticism as some lawmakers have questioned the legality of an operation to seize the head of state of a foreign power.
See aftermath of US raid on Venezuela to capture Maduro
Developments:
∎ Trump, speaking on Air Force One, mused about other countries on Sunday, saying Mexico needs to "get its act together," telling reporters that military action in Colombia sounds "good." Trump also reiterated his claims that the U.S. "needs Greenland" and said the Cuban regime is "ready to fall."
∎ Cuban state media reported that 32 Cuban nationals providing security for Maduro were killed in the surprise U.S. attack over the weekend. Neither the U.S. nor Venezuela has confirmed the death toll, but American officials said several soldiers were injured in the operation.
∎ While Trump says the U.S. will "run" Venezuela, Secretary of StateMarco Rubiohas said focus remains on using leverage and pressure to force the oil-rich country to act in line with American interests. So far, there's been more questions than answers about how Venezuela will be governed after Maduro's capture.
Venezuela's Vice President Delcy Rodríguez adopts softer tone
While speaking to reporters on Sunday night, Trump reiterated that the U.S. is "in charge" of Venezuela. The president added that his administration is "dealing with the people that just got sworn in," in an apparent reference toVenezuela's Vice President Delcy Rodríguez, who has been named as acting president.
Trump told reporters that he has not spoken to Rodríguez yet, but others have, adding that he will speak to her "at the right time." He later said the U.S. did not give anything to Rodríguez in exchange for cooperating but noted "she's cooperating."
Venezuela's VP Delcy Rodriguez takes over after Maduro capture
Rodríguez previously rejected Trump's claims that she was willing to work with his administration, but adopted a softer tone in a statement on Sunday night. She called for a "balanced and respectful" relationship with the United States, adding that relations between the two countries should be based on "sovereign equality and non-interference."
"We invite the U.S. government to collaborate with us on an agenda of cooperation oriented towards shared development within the framework of international law to strengthen lasting community coexistence," Rodríguez said ina statement on Telegram.
Earlier that day, Trump had issued a warning against Rodríguez. "If she doesn't do what's right, she is going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro," Trump toldThe Atlantic.
Trump says US needs 'total access' to Venezuela's resources
When asked if he would demand free and fair elections in Venezuela, Trump said, "it depends." Before elections can take place in the country, he said Venezuela needs to be "fixed."
"We're looking more at getting it fixed, getting it ready first, because it's a mess. The country is a mess," he said.
Trump also called on Rodríguez to provide the United States with "total access" to Venezuela's resources. He noted that oil companies wanted to enter Venezuela and repair the country's oil infrastructure.
Venezuela is recognized as havingthe world's largest proven crude oil reserves, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Trump has said U.S. oil companies could start investing again in the region, a practice halted when Maduro's predecessor, the late Hugo Chavez, expropriated the assets of foreign oil companies.
Trump threatens Colombia, says Cuba may fall on its own
In his comments on board Air Force One, Trump called Venezuela "very sick" and said the U.S. might launch a second military strike on the country if remaining members of Maduro's administration do not cooperate with his efforts to get the country "fixed."
His comments also raised the possibility of further U.S. military interventions in Latin America. Trump suggested that Colombia and Mexico could also face military action if they do not reduce the flow of illicit drugs to the U.S.
"Colombia is very sick, too, run by a sick man, who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States, and he's not going to be doing it very long," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, in an apparent reference to Colombia's president Gustavo Petro.
He also said that Cuba, a close ally of Venezuela, "looks like it's ready to fall" on its own without U.S. military action. According to Trump, "a lot of Cubans were killed" during the operation to capture Maduro on Saturday.
Venezuela's Defense Minister General Vladimir Padrino said on state television the U.S. attack killed soldiers, civilians and a "large part" of Maduro's security detail "in cold blood." The Cuban government said 32 of its citizens were killed during the raid.
Venezuelan houses destroyed in US attack
Some homes in the town of Catia La Mar near Venezuela's capital Caracas were damaged or destroyed in the U.S. military operation, residents told Reuters on Jan. 4.
Jonatan Mallora, a 50-year-old motorcycle taxi driver, and his neighbor Angel Alvarez, a young street vendor, said they woke on Jan. 3 to explosions in their community in La Guaira state, about 19 miles north of Caracas.
"It's sheer luck they didn't kill my kids," Mallora said amid the rubble of his apartment, where the roof was destroyed. He said he fled and escaped unharmed along with his 24-year-old daughter and 22-year-old son.
"I would never wish on anyone" the experience of an attack, he added. "We're alive by a miracle."
Venezuelan authorities have said the U.S. hit areas in La Guaira, Caracas and the neighboring states of Miranda and Aragua and that soldiers, civilians and much of Maduro's security team were killed, though they have not offered specific figures on dead and injured.
Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, pictured here after his capture aboard the USS Iwo Jima, is seen in this handout image posted by U.S. President Donald Trump on Truth Social Jan. 3, 2026. The United States captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife in an overnight military operation on Jan. 3, 2026, President Donald Trump said, as explosions rocked Caracas and targets across the country." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
US bombs targets in Venezuela and captures Nicolás Maduro
What's next in Venezuela?
The Trump administration'scapture of Madurobore some familiar echoes to the 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama that ousted military strongman Manuel Noriega, marking the most direct U.S. intervention in Latin America since.
But experts say that despite some similarities, the two key moments in America's long and checkered history of interventions differ in major ways that could make achieving U.S. goals more challenging this time, following a raid that has revived regional anxiety.
"This is not going to be so simple in Venezuela," said Will Freeman, a Latin America fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations. "One, it's not even likely that we get to democracy. And two, many of the problems that were there with Maduro are going to remain."Read more here.
− Chris Kenning
Rubio, who dreamed of ousting Venezuela's Maduro, takes charge
The capture of Maduro and his wife during a nighttime raid by U.S. troops on his compound in Caracas marked the realization of a longtime political goal for Trump. But it was a personal victory for a key member of Trump's administration: Secretary of StateMarco Rubio.
"Nicolás Maduro had multiple opportunities to avoid this," Rubio said, standing alongside Trump at a post-raid news conference at Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. "He was provided multiple, very, very, very generous offers, and chose instead to act like a wild man, chose to play around. And the result is what we saw tonight."
Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants, has been one of the primary architects of the Trump administration's Venezuela policy, which shifted the United States away from decades-long diplomatic negotiations on human rights and other issues to the use of military force to remove a de facto leader from office.Read more here.
− Francesca Chambers and Michael Collins
Contributing: Reuters
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Maduro to appear in court after capture: Live updates
