Rubio, Hegseth brief congressional leaders as questions mount over next steps in Venezuela

Washington/New York: Top US officials have briefed leaders in Congress on its surprise military operation in Venezuela amid mounting concerns that President Donald Trump is embarking on a new era of US expansionism without the consultation of lawmakers or a clear vision for running the South American country.

The two-hour briefing came as toppled Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro appeared in a New York court, pleading not guilty to federal drugs and weapons charges and declaring himself a “prisoner of war” after his dramatic weekend capture by US special forces, which has plunged Venezuela into uncertainty.

Nearby, the United Nations’ 15-member Security Council held an emergency meeting at its New York headquarters, with adversaries of the US using it to condemn the military action and allies stressing the importance of abiding by international law and the UN Charter.

Meanwhile, the Venezuelan government sought to show its people and the world that the country is being run independently and not controlled by the US, with Delcy Rodríguez, who served as vice president to Maduro, sworn in as interim president with the blessing of Maduro’s son.

But there are already warning signs that a new wave of repression has begun in Venezuela, where heavily armed security forces and pro-government motorcycle gangs known as colectivos were seen roaming Caracas and more than a dozen members of the press were briefly detained while covering events in the capital, according to its press association.

“The presence of colectivos on the streets is clearly intended to reinforce the government’s internal repression scheme and prevent popular mobilisations through fear,” said Andrei Serbin Pont, president of the Buenos Aires-based research group CRIES, which closely monitors Venezuela’s security forces.

Republican leaders entered the closed-door session at the US Capitol largely supportive of Trump’s decision to forcibly remove Maduro from power. But many Democrats emerged with more questions as the US president maintains a fleet of naval vessels off the Venezuelan coast and urges US companies to reinvest in the country’s underperforming oil industry.

A war powers resolution that would prohibit further US military action in Venezuela without approval from Congress is heading for a vote this week in the Senate.

“We don’t expect troops on the ground,” Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said afterwards.

He said Venezuela’s new leadership could not be allowed to engage in narco-terrorism or the trafficking of drugs into the US, which sparked Trump’s initial campaign of deadly boat strikes that have killed more than 115 people.

“This is not a regime change. This is demand for a change in behaviour,” Johnson said. “We don’t expect direct involvement in any other way beyond just coercing the new, the interim government, to get that going.”

But US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said the US plan for running Venezuela was “vague, based on wishful thinking, and was unsatisfying”.

“I did not receive any assurances that we would not try to do the same thing in other countries,” he said.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Air Force General Dan Caine and Attorney-General Pam Bondi, who brought the charges against Maduro, all joined the classified session.

Asked afterwards if he had more clarity about who was actually running Venezuela, senator Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the intelligence committee, said, “I wish I could tell you yes, but I can’t.”

Rodríguez was earlier sworn in by her brother, Jorge, at Venezuela’s National Assembly.

“I come with sorrow for the suffering inflicted upon the Venezuelan people following an illegitimate military aggression against our homeland,” she said, right hand raised. “I come with sorrow for the kidnapping of two heroes.”

Rodríguez has – at least for now – the backing of both the Chavismo strongholds in her government and Trump, who has said she would work with Washington to “make Venezuela great again”.

She struck a conciliatory tone on Sunday, asking the US to work with her country on a co-operation agenda, after Trump had threatened that she could “pay a very big price” if she did not fall in line with US demands.

Her biggest public endorsement from within Venezuela came from Maduro’s son, Nicolás Maduro Guerra, who said he would “unconditionally support” her while warning that the capture of his father could set a dangerous precedent globally and demanding that his parents be returned.

Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were indicted on numerous charges on Monday (Tuesday morning AEDT), including narco-terrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine.

Handcuffed and surrounded by heavily armed federal agents and NYPD police officers, they were taken from their prison cells at the Metropolitan Detention Centre in Brooklyn and flown by helicopter to a helipad in Wall Street, then transported in an armoured truck the short distance to the court precinct in Lower Manhattan.

Scores of heavily armed agents and NYPD police officers guarded them as the transfer took place.

Maduro was shackled at the ankles as he pleaded not guilty to the numerous charges, telling the judge: “I am innocent, I am not guilty. I am a decent man.”

The ousted leader also said his capture was a kidnapping. “I’m the president of the Republic of Venezuela ... I am here kidnapped ... I was captured at my home in Caracas, Venezuela,” he said before District Judge Alvin Hellerstein cut him off.

Also in New York, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres raised concerns about greater instability in Venezuela following the US operation and called on all those involved to engage in an inclusive and democratic dialogue.

“I am deeply concerned about the possible intensification of instability in the country, the potential impact on the region, and the precedent it may set for how relations between and among states are conducted,” Guterres said in a statement delivered to the council.

While French President Emmanuel Macron recently endorsed Maduro’s capture, his country’s UN envoy said the operation eroded “the very foundation of the international order”.

“The military operation that has led to the capture of Maduro runs counter to the principle of peace dispute resolution and runs counter to the principle of non-use of force,” deputy French ambassador to the UN, Jay Dharmadhikari, said.

But US envoy Mike Waltz defended the attack as a justified and “surgical law enforcement operation”, and called out the 15-member council for criticising the targeting of Maduro.

“If the United Nations in this body confers legitimacy on an illegitimate narco-terrorist with the same treatment in this charter of a democratically elected president or head of state, what kind of organisation is this?” said Waltz, who is Trump’s former national security adviser.

The biggest critics of US foreign policy, China and Russia, which are also permanent members of the security council, called for the UN body to unite in rejecting America turning back to an “era of lawlessness”.

Maduro, like his predecessor, forged a close relationship with Russia, while China was the main destination for most Venezuelan oil.

AP, Bloomberg, Reuters

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