The secretary of state said Trump acted to eliminate “a major national security threat” in the Western Hemisphere.
MIAMI, United States. — The Secretary of State of the United States, the Cuban-American Marco Rubio, defended this Wednesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee the military operation ordered by President Donald Trump on January 3 to overthrow and arrest Nicolas Maduroan action that Republican and Democratic legislators evaluated with opposite readings about its results and costs, according to AP.
Rubio affirmed that Trump acted to eliminate “a major threat to national security” in the Western Hemisphere and maintained that, after the operation, the United States is “safer and more protected,” while the Republican administration works with interim authorities to “stabilize” Venezuela.
“We’re not going to reverse this overnight, but I think we’re making good, decent progress,” Rubio stated. “We are certainly better off today in Venezuela than we were four weeks ago and I believe and hope that we will be better off in three months, six months and nine months than we would have been if Maduro was still there.”
The former Florida senator said that Venezuela’s interim leaders are cooperating and that the country will soon “begin to see benefits.” As part of that scheme, he noted that Venezuela will be allowed to sell oil currently subject to US sanctions, with proceeds going to fund basic government services such as police and health care.
According to Rubio, the money from these sales will be deposited in an account under the control of the United States Department of the Treasury and will be released once Washington approves the monthly budgets presented by the Venezuelan authorities. “The funds from that will be deposited in an account over which we will have supervision,” Rubio said. Venezuela, he said, “will spend that money for the benefit of the Venezuelan people.”
The committee’s chairman, Republican Senator Jim Risch (Idaho), praised Trump’s decision to remove Maduro and also supported attacks on suspected drug smuggling boats and the seizure of sanctioned oil tankers. Risch provided new details about the operation in Caracas, stating that it involved “only around 200 troops” and that a “shootout lasted less than 27 minutes.” “This military action was incredibly brief, planned and successful,” he said. He added that the United States and other nations will probably have to help Venezuela restore democratic elections and considered that “Venezuela may require US and international oversight to ensure that these elections are truly free and fair.”
The committee’s top Democrat, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (N.H.), questioned whether the operation was “worth it,” arguing that most of Maduro’s top advisers and lieutenants remain in power and that the economic situation remains bleak.
“We’ve traded one dictator for another, so it’s no wonder many of my constituents are wondering, why is the president spending so much time focusing on Venezuela instead of the cost of living and his domestic economic concerns?” asked. “From Venezuela to Europe, the United States is spending more, risking more and achieving less.”
AP noted that Rubio went to Capitol Hill to defend one of Trump’s most controversial priorities before his former colleagues, in a foreign policy context that oscillates between the Western Hemisphere, Europe and the Middle East, and with alarm within the Republican Party itself over initiatives such as Trump’s demand to annex Greenland.
In Congress, Democrats have condemned Trump’s actions as exceeding the authority of the executive branch, while most Republicans have supported them as a legitimate exercise of presidential power. The House of Representatives narrowly rejected a war powers resolution that would have forced Trump to withdraw US troops from Venezuela. Rubio maintained that the administration claims that there are no US troops on the ground, despite a large military deployment in the region, according to AP.
Washington also seeks to normalize ties with the interim president of Venezuela, Delcy Rodriguez. Rubio included in comments prepared for the hearing — which, according to the report, he did not read verbatim — the idea that Rodríguez has few options other than abiding by Trump’s demands. “Rodríguez is very aware of Maduro’s fate; we believe his own interest aligns with advancing our objectives,” he said.
The administration, according to the report, has raised demands that include opening the Venezuelan energy sector to American companies, granting preferential access to production, using oil revenues to buy American goods and ending subsidized oil exports to Cuba.
Rodríguez declared on television on Tuesday that her government and the United States have established “respectful and courteous” communication channels and that she, Trump and Rubio are trying to set a work agenda. The report claims that Rodríguez has appeared to give in to Trump’s demands, including the release of prisoners imprisoned under the governments of Maduro and Hugo Chávez.
In a step toward reestablishing diplomatic relations, the State Department notified Congress this week of its intention to send additional diplomatic and support personnel to Caracas to prepare for a possible reopening of the US embassy, closed in 2019. However, full normalization would require the United States to reverse its decision to recognize the parliament elected in 2015 as the legitimate government of Venezuela.
