Trump’s words come hours after the Supreme Court of Justice appointed Rodríguez as interim president of Venezuela.
LIMA, Peru – Hours after the Supreme Court of Justice designated Delcy Rodríguez as the interim president of Venezuela, US President Donald Trump sent a veiled threat to the Chavista leader in a conversation with the media Atlantic.
“If she doesn’t do the right thing, she will pay a very big price, possibly greater than Maduro,” said Trump, alluding to the capture of the dictator in Caracas, carried out by military forces on January 3.
The president’s words differ from the tone of complacency that he used when referring to Rodríguez the day before during the press conference in Mar-a-lago, where the Republican assured that Rodríguez was willing to cooperate with the United States, which would allow Washington to manage Venezuela “until it is safe.”
Trump’s severity also transcends after statements by the executive this Saturday, who demanded from Caracas the “immediate release” of Maduro, in his words, “the only president” of Venezuela.
For his part, the Secretary of State Marco Rubio He appeared today on the CBS network with a speech similar to that of the ruler of the White House.
“We are going to evaluate based on what they do, not on what they say publicly in the interim, nor only on what they have done in the past in many cases, but on what they do from now on (…) What I do know is that, if they do not make the right decisions, the United States will retain multiple levers of pressure to guarantee that our interests are protected, and that includes the oil quarantine that is in force, among other things,” Rubio said.
Capture of Maduro: keys to the operation
In the early hours of January 3, United States special forces executed a military operation lightning strike called Operation Absolute Resolve to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. The attack began shortly after two in the morning in Caracas and combined selective bombings against military installations with a direct raid by elite commandos.
The operation was prepared for months and refined in the previous four days. A supermoon was used to improve nighttime visibility and was carried out under strict aerial and intelligence coordination. President Donald Trump gave the final order at 10:46 PM (Washington time) and followed developments in real time from Mar-a-Lago.
Units from the Delta Force and the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Night Stalkers) participated, supported by more than 150 aircraft—including F-22, F-35 and F-18 fighters, B-1 bombers, drones and helicopters—that took off from about 20 bases and aircraft carriers in the Western Hemisphere. US forces neutralized Venezuelan air defense systems and attacked key targets such as the La Carlota air base and the Fuerte Tiuna military complex to prevent an effective response.
The operation relied on intelligence obtained by agencies such as the CIA, the NSA and the NGA, including the alleged infiltration of an agent into the Chavista government environment. During the raid, the power supply to Caracas was cut off to facilitate the assault in the dark. The commandos broke into a highly protected location, forced open armored doors and captured Maduro and his wife while they slept.
