US President Donald Trump on Friday downplayed suggestions that Washington could launch a dramatic operation against Russian President Vladimir Putin similar to the raid that led to the capture of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro, saying such a move was “not necessary,” even as he expressed deep disappointment over the Ukraine war.
Asked about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s cryptic comments suggesting Putin could be next after Maduro’s takeover, Trump told reporters: “I don’t think it’s going to be necessary. I think we’re going to have, and always have had, a great relationship with him.”
During a meeting with top US oil and gas executives, Trump added that he was “very disappointed” that the conflict was not over yet. “I solved eight wars. I thought this one would be in the middle of the pack or maybe one of the easiest,” he said, referring to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has been in full swing since 2022.
Putin is currently the subject of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court in The Hague for alleged war crimes in Ukraine, a factor that has further complicated diplomatic efforts to end the fighting.
Zelensky’s insinuation after Maduro’s arrest
The comments came a week after a shocking US military operation in Caracas in which former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro was dragged from his residence in a pre-dawn raid and flown to the United States to face trial on drug trafficking and other charges. The unprecedented action shook governments around the world and emboldened some of Washington’s allies.
Zelensky, whose country continues to resist Russian forces, made an oblique reference to Putin when reacting to the Maduro episode, saying that if this is how a “dictator” should be treated, then “the United States knows what to do next.”
Trump, however, publicly rejected the idea that he would order a similar mission against the Russian leader.
Recounting the human cost of the war, Trump said he regretted not having been able to stop it sooner. “Last month, they lost 31,000 people. Many of them were Russian soldiers. The Russian economy is doing poorly. I think we are going to end up solving the problem. I wish we could have done it faster because a lot of people are dying, mostly soldiers,” he said.
How Maduro was captured
According to accounts published by Washington, the operation in Venezuela unfolded shortly after midnight in Caracas, when US planes carried out airstrikes throughout the city before elite Delta Force troops stormed Maduro’s residence.
He and his wife, Cilia Flores, were detained and flown to a U.S. military base before being transported to New York aboard the USS Jima, an amphibious assault ship.
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Since then, Maduro’s vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, assumed the presidency, even as she condemned what she called a “serious, criminal, illegal and illegitimate attack” by the United States. Despite the strong language, Caracas and Washington have begun exploratory talks about restoring diplomatic relations, and American diplomats are already in the Venezuelan capital to evaluate the reopening of the embassy.
Oil, prisoners and protests
Trump has closely linked the post-Maduro transition to Venezuela’s vast oil wealth, pressuring U.S. energy companies to invest while promising them “total security” under a new deal in which the companies would deal only with Washington, not Caracas.
He has stated that oil companies are willing to invest up to $100 billion in the country and has announced plans for the United States to sell tens of millions of barrels of Venezuelan crude, using the proceeds at its discretion.
At the same time, Venezuelan authorities have begun releasing political prisoners, a move Washington says was achieved after the US raid.
Families gathered outside prisons in Caracas on Friday in hopes of being reunited, while Trump said he would meet next week with opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.
The dramatic events have also sparked anger in the streets. Protesters in Caracas have demonstrated daily demanding Maduro’s release and rejecting US control over the country’s resources.
“We don’t have to give a single drop of oil to Trump after everything he has done to us,” said Josefina Castro, 70, a civil activist. “Our Venezuelan brothers died in the attack and that hurts.”
