After months of escalating US pressure on Venezuela, the crisis reached a dramatic turning point on Saturday with the US capture of President Nicolás Maduro. According to President Donald Trump, Maduro was seized in a late night military operation and transferred to a US naval vessel to be transported to New York to face charges related to drug trafficking and narco-terrorism. The operation reportedly included large-scale military strikes, marking the most direct intervention to date.
While Maduro is now out of power, the political future of Venezuela remains uncertain. Trump said the United States would effectively be “running” the country for the foreseeable future, though he offered few details on what that would entail. Venezuela’s vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, has been sworn in, and US officials have suggested a willingness to work with existing regime figures, even as Rodríguez publicly rejected any notion of US control and called for Maduro’s return. As details of the operation continue to emerge, major questions remain. Follow along here for the latest updates and analysis.
Trump says the US is going to “run” Venezuela. What does that mean?
For months, as the US has built up military forces around Venezuela, attacking alleged drug boats and seizing sanctioned oil tankers, the big question was whether the US would escalate to a campaign of regime change against the government of Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro.
After the dramatic events of Saturday morning, that question would appear to be answered — in some ways.
How Trump went from boat strikes to regime change in Venezuela
President Donald Trump called for the US to “run” Venezuela on Saturday, shortly after the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro amid US strikes on the country’s capital of Caracas. The attack is a major escalation in Trump’s months-long pressure campaign against Venezuela and pushes the US into uncertain territory legally, politically, and militarily. Here’s what we know.
US forces launched attacks against an unspecified number of targets in Caracas, Venezuela, overnight, and successfully located and captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. The couple has since been flown out of the country, Trump said in an early morning social media post, and will be taken by ship to face criminal charges in the US. Much is still unclear, but Trump claims US troops are thought to have been killed in the attack.
Why Trump sent in troops to capture Maduro, briefly explained
President Donald Trump announced Saturday morning that the United States has captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, saying that the US had flown Maduro to a military ship off the country’s coast and will be taking him to New York.
The capture of Maduro was part of a military operation that included “large-scale strikes” on Venezuela, Trump said.
Why is the US attacking Venezuela?
Editor’s note, January 3, 2026, 8:30 am: President Donald Trump announced early on Saturday, January 3, that the United States had captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife after a “large-scale strike” on the country, a significant escalation of US involvement in the region. This article was originally published December 1, 2025, and last updated December 11.
Since the early fall, the US has been building up its military forces in the Caribbean and launching airstrikes on alleged drug boats, fueling speculation that it is planning a major military operation against the government of Venezuela.
Who is Nicolás Maduro?
Editor’s note, January 3, 2026, 10 am: President Donald Trump announced early on Saturday, January 3, that the United States had captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife after a “large-scale strike” on the country, a significant escalation of US involvement in the region. The article below was originally published December 9, 2025. For Vox’s latest coverage of the strike on Venezuela, see this article
Behind the crippling economic and political situation in Venezuela is Nicolás Maduro.
