14 h. ago Before Maduro’s capture in Venezuela, US spoke with minister who is his loyal ally

Trump administration officials had been in discussions with Venezuela’s hardline Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello months before the US operation to seize the country’s leader, Nicolas Maduro, and have been in communication with him since then, according to multiple people familiar with the matter. The officials warned Cabello, 62, against using the security services or militant ruling-party supporters overseen by him to target the country’s opposition, four sources said. That security...

Politics

3 d. ago How Putin’s focus on Ukraine war leaves allies Venezuela, Iran and Cuba exposed

As Russian President Vladimir Putin focuses his attentions on Moscow’s war in Ukraine, his strategic allies around the world have been left feeling neglected – or worse. In Venezuela, officials now think their years-long security relationship with Moscow was a paper tiger. They’re not alone: From Damascus and Tehran to Havana, over the last 13 months authoritarian regimes which previously benefited from their close ties to the Kremlin have found Russian support lacking when it mattered...

Politics

6 d. ago U.S. Used Venezuela Raid to Tell China to Stay Out of the Americas, Officials Say

U.S. Used Venezuela Raid to Tell China to Stay Out of the Americas, Officials Say  The Sunday Guardian

Politics

9 d. ago Top South Korean official calls Trump’s Venezuela raid ‘violent atrocity’, stirring unease

Senior officials in South Korea’s Prime Minister’s Office are voicing concern over Park Seok-woon, a committee chairman under its authority, after he joined protests criticising US President Donald Trump and his administration over American military operations in Venezuela. Park, a long-time liberal activist, took part in a rally on Monday in front of the US embassy in Seoul, following an American military operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, who has been in power since 2013,...

Politics

1 week ago U.S. Pressures Venezuela to Expel Official Advisers From China, Cuba, Iran and Russia, Officials Say

U.S. Pressures Venezuela to Expel Official Advisers From China, Cuba, Iran and Russia, Officials Say  The New York Times

Politics

3 w. ago Venezuela frees 99 prisoners detained after 2024 election protests, prisons authority says

Venezuela released 99 prisoners on Christmas Day, officials said, with the government calling it a goodwill gesture as it assesses arrests made after President Nicolas Maduro’s re-election. “The national government and the justice system have decided to evaluate each case individually and, in accordance with the law”, released 99 citizens “as a concrete expression of the State’s commitment to peace, dialogue and justice”, the Ministry of Penitentiary Services said. “They were deprived of liberty...

Events

3 w. ago US 'in active pursuit' of third oil tanker near Venezuela: media

US 'in active pursuit' of third oil tanker near Venezuela: media  China Daily - Global Edition

Events

3 w. ago US is pursuing a third oil tanker near Venezuela, officials say

The US Coast Guard is pursuing an oil tanker in international waters near Venezuela, officials told Reuters on Sunday, in what would be the second such operation this weekend and the third in less than a week. One of the officials said the tanker was under sanctions. The officials, who were speaking on condition of anonymity, did not give a specific location for the operation. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday. US President Donald Trump last week...

Politics

3 w. ago US pursues third oil tanker as Trump’s Venezuela ‘blockade’ intensifies

The US Coast Guard is pursuing an oil tanker in international waters near Venezuela, officials told Reuters on Sunday, in what would be the second such operation this weekend and the third in less than two weeks if successful. “The United States Coast Guard is in active pursuit of a sanctioned ‘dark fleet’ vessel that is part of Venezuela’s illegal sanctions evasion,” a US official said. “It is flying a false flag and under a judicial seizure order.” Another official said the tanker was under...

Politics