Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro told the international press that eight U.S. military vessels and more than 1,200 missiles are pointed at his country, calling it “the greatest threat our continent has faced in the past 100 years.”
PUBLICIDAD
“Venezuela is facing the biggest threat our continent has seen in the last 100 years,” Maduro said during a press conference in Caracas. According to the president, this represents “an extravagant, unjustifiable, immoral and absolutely criminal, bloody threat.”
PUBLICIDAD
He also urged the international community to adhere to the Treaty of Tlatelolco, which bans nuclear weapons in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López had already warned that Venezuelan forces are preparing for any attack: “We are getting ready and we will fight if you dare to set foot in Venezuela.” The government reported that more than 10,000 troops have already been deployed across the country and another 15,000 along the Colombian border as part of its “preventive defense” strategy.
Rising Tensions
Behind this crisis, Caracas points to what it calls the “Miami-ization” of the U.S. State Department, singling out Senator Marco Rubio as one of the main instigators of tension with the Trump administration. “Donald Trump should be careful with Marco Rubio,” Maduro warned, accusing the U.S. secretary of fueling the conflict.
At the same time, the Venezuelan government is seeking humanitarian dialogue. Vice President Delcy Rodríguez has taken steps to arrange a meeting with First Lady Melania Trump, hoping to raise awareness in the White House about the situation of Venezuelan children and those separated from their families in ICE raids in the U.S.
Publimetro Asks About Mexico and International Support
When asked by Publimetro about Mexico’s position and the silence of the international community, Maduro expressed gratitude “for all the support of the Mexican people in Venezuela’s fight for peace and sovereignty” and welcomed CELAC’s decision to call an emergency meeting on the issue.
The president compared the current situation to historic cases of media manipulation used to justify military interventions, such as the USS Maine in Cuba, the Gulf of Tonkin in Vietnam, and false claims of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and Libya. “The empire uses lies and manipulation to try to force what cannot be forced. With Venezuela’s truth we will defeat all their narratives and all their lies,” he said.
On Donald Trump, Maduro was direct: “I have no animosity toward President Trump. We agree on one thing: we want peace for the world.” However, he cautioned that decisions do not rest solely with the U.S. president: “Neither does he have full power to make that decision, nor will they allow him to. The deep state will not allow it.”
Oil and Investment: “Venezuelans Are in Charge Here”
On economic matters, Maduro said Venezuela’s oil production “is doing very well, with and without licenses, better than what is being reported.” While he avoided giving specific figures, he projected GDP growth of up to 9% this year.
The president noted that companies like Chevron have already been granted licenses to operate in the country and reiterated his willingness to welcome more U.S. investment. “Anyone from the United States who wants to invest within the framework of the law is welcome. We know how to work and produce, and Chevron and other foreign investors know it.”
He also sent a message to Europe: “You don’t need a license or permission from the United States. The days of monopoly are over. Venezuelans are in charge here, and whoever wants to invest is welcome.”
Regional and Global Reactions
The Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) urgently called on foreign ministers from its 33 member states to discuss “the potential implications for peace, security, and regional stability.”
Russia also voiced its support for Venezuela. Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov expressed Moscow’s “full support and solidarity” with Venezuelan Ambassador Jesús Salazar Velásquez and rejected “the use of political pressure and force against independent states.”
A Power Struggle
The Maduro government accuses the United States of seeking regime change by force, while Washington insists its main goal is to dismantle drug trafficking networks such as the Tren de Aragua and the so-called Cartel of the Suns, for which it has offered multimillion-dollar rewards.
With these accusations escalating, the Caribbean has become the epicenter of a new diplomatic and military standoff, while several Latin American countries, including Mexico, express concern over the risk of open conflict.
Maduro also referenced statements by Colombian President Gustavo Petro who said: “If there is a violent aggression against Venezuela, what we see in Syria and Iraq will become the reality of the entire Gran Colombia region. Mass murderers driven by greed will seize territories, and states will weaken as instruments of social peace. That is why in Bolívar’s great homeland there can only be national sovereignty; neither in Panama, nor in Ecuador, nor in Colombia, nor in Venezuela should there be servile submission to foreigners. The region must coordinate its anti-drug policies with foreign powers on equal terms, because this is a problem for all humanity—but on equal terms, not in subordination.”