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Trump Says U.S. is "in Charge" of Venezuela; Democrats Critical of White House Over Venezuela Operation; Trump Says The U.S. Is "In Charge" Of Venezuela; Maduro's Capture Sparks Concern Across Latin America; How The Capture Of Maduro Was Planned And Unfolded. Aired 2- 3a ET

Aired January 05, 2026 - 02:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNKNOWN (voice-over): This is CNN Breaking News.

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church. It is 3 a.m. in Caracas, Venezuela, 2 a.m. in Washington, D.C.

And we begin with our breaking news coverage of the fallout over the U.S. operation in Venezuela and the capture of Nicolas Maduro and his wife. Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump returned to Washington and said aboard Air Force One that the U.S. is -- quote -- "in charge of Venezuela" and had this warning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: We are prepared to do a second strike if we need it. We're totally prepared.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): But that's off the table -- that's off the table now.

TRUMP: No, it's not. If they don't behave, we will do a second strike.

UNKNOWN: The question is, the American troops, are they going to be on the ground? Are they doing any kind of peacekeeping? I think Americans are very --

TRUMP: It depends. It depends on what happens. It depends a little bit on the new administration, if you want to call it that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: At the same time, Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, is now striking a softer tone and extending an invitation to the U.S. government to collaborate on a -- quote -- "agenda of cooperation." All these as Nicolas Maduro, now in custody in New York, is set to make his first court appearance on Monday. He faces drug, weapons, and narcoterrorism conspiracy charges. President Trump claims the case against Maduro is strong.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: The case is infallible. People is so happy with what we've done. You know, you go down to Miami, you go down to a lot of places, and they're all dancing in the streets of this country. He was rough. He killed millions of people. He killed millions and millions of people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: President Trump remains adamant about getting Venezuela's new acting leader to cooperate, and he's weighing further military action inside the country, depending on the posture of Venezuela's new leadership. CNN's Julia Benbrook brings us the latest from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: President Donald Trump is now back at the White House after spending a couple of weeks at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. That is where he monitored the complex operation that led to the capture of ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

On his trip back to Washington, Trump spoke with reporters for more than 30 minutes. And he praised the work of the U.S. service members who were involved. He said that they are all in good shape after a -- quote -- "dangerous operation."

He also reiterated a statement that he had made earlier in the weekend when he said the United States would -- quote -- "run Venezuela until a judicious transition can take place."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Who's in charge of Venezuela right now? Have you spoken to the newly sworn in president there, Rodriguez, and what are your thoughts on the entire situation? You said the U.S. would run Venezuela.

TRUMP: We're dealing with the people. We're dealing with the people that just got sworn in. And don't ask me who's in charge because I'll give you an answer and it will be very controversial.

UNKNOWN: What does that mean?

TRUMP: It means we're in charge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Now, Trump did say that the United States is working with Venezuela's vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, who is in that acting role now. But she has pushed back and has called for Maduro's immediate release, saying that she believes that he is the country's legitimate leader.

Now, in an interview Sunday with "The Atlantic," Trump delivered a stark warning for Rodriguez. He said this: "If she doesn't do what's right, she's going to pay a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro." When he was pressed on what he meant by that, he said that her situation would probably be worse because Maduro -- quote -- "gave up immediately." He also said that the United States needs total access to oil and other things in their country that allow us to rebuild their country. Trump has not yet spoken to Rodriguez directly.

Now, Trump does say that he believes the case against Maduro is infallible. Maduro faces drugs and weapons charges and is expected to appear in federal court soon.

Julia Benbrook, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:04:55]

CHURCH: Critics say the Trump administration is providing confusing and inconsistent legal justifications for the Venezuela operation and really hasn't provided a full explanation at all. As recently as early November, the White House chief of staff acknowledged that land strikes in Venezuela would need congressional approval, which the administration did not seek or receive. Other officials also admitted they lacked the legal justification to support land strike, but the Trump administration carried them out anyway. Now, President Trump says the U.S. is running Venezuela and will take over its vast oil reserves, all of which raises more legal questions.

Mariano de Alba is an associate fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. He joins me now from London. Appreciate you being with us.

MARIANO DE ALBA, ASSOCIATE FELLOW, INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES: Thank you so much for the invitation.

CHURCH: So, how legal were the actions of U.S. President Donald Trump when he ordered this audacious operation that captured and removed Venezuela's head of state?

DE ALBA: Well, I don't think that from an international law standpoint, we can really justify legally the operation. It runs counter to the rules agreed in 1945 on the prohibition of the use of force as enshrined in the U.N. Charter. Also, it is clear also that the U.S. was not under attack, so it cannot claim an argument of legitimate defense or self-defense. However, in the U.S., it's going to be different. I don't think that the U.S. courts will entertain any arguments against the legality from an international law perspective of the operation.

From a Trump administration standpoint, there are two clear arguments. First, Maduro was not the legitimate president of Venezuela, and that's true in the sense that he recently lost the presidential election last year. And two, Maduro and his wife, Maduro specifically and now his wife, since March 2020, he has been indicted by a U.S. court on the charges that he's now facing.

CHURCH: Right. So, let's look at that because President Maduro is now in the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York City and will appear, as you mentioned, in court for the first time in the coming hours at 12 p.m. Eastern to face drug, weapons, and narcoterrorism conspiracy charges. President Trump says the case against Maduro is infallible. Do you agree with that assessment?

DE ALBA: I wouldn't -- I wouldn't go up as far, but I do think that it is highly likely that he will be ultimately convicted. However, it's going to be a long process. Obviously, he will have the chance to present his case.

But I think that all arguments and all available public evidence points out that, in fact, this was a government that he headed that allowed -- that allowed drug trafficking in the country in exchange for some benefits for monetary benefits, another kind of benefits for the government. So, in a sense, he was -- it could be concluded that he was under a conspiracy to export drugs not only to the U.S. but also to other countries.

CHURCH: And the U.S. military operation in Venezuela will also be the focus of an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council in the hours ahead with the U.N. secretary general apparently deeply alarmed and concerned that this U.S. action in Venezuela didn't respect the rules of international law. What do you say to that?

DE ALBA: Well, I think it's going to be a relevant meeting in the sense that, you know, I guess many countries in the world, even those that criticize Maduro and are happy about his departure, are really worried about the present that this may set for the coming months and years in the sense that, you know, if now, any country that has the sufficient military force is allowed to fly into another country and seize that country even though it's a de facto leader, then that opens other possibilities not only for the U.S. but also for other countries like China, Russia and so forth.

So, I think that part of the reason that the meeting is going to happen is to try to warn that this should be a one-time thing, right? In terms of a specific action or resolution, I don't expect anything concrete coming out of that meeting in the end because of the U.S. power of veto.

CHURCH: And former NATO supreme allied commander, General Wesley Clark, told CNN on Sunday that the U.S. military fights for America not to go into other countries to suck out the oil of that nation. What's the legal status of removing a head of state with the intent of taking control of that nation's oil reserves?

[02:10:03]

DE ALBA: I mean, I don't think it can be justified legally from any standpoint. However, how will the U.S. take the oil? It's up for discussion. It seems like the plan is to try to coerce now that country's leadership which, in fact, is the one that also accompanied Maduro in power to make deals that are very favorable to U.S. interests.

So, I don't think that the U.S. is planning to invade the country and take control of the oil but basically coerce the country's leadership to sign agreements that are totally in the interest and in favor of the U.S.

CHURCH: And President Trump has also suggested that Greenland and Colombia could be next. What's your reaction to that?

DE ALBA: Well, I think that that will be much more problematic and will get much more international backlash. Part of the reason, I think, that the U.S. in the end decided to do this is because Maduro was illegitimate. Maduro and many people from his inner circle have long been accused of narcotrafficking. So, in a sense, at least in the western world, Maduro didn't have any people that could vouch for him.

That's going to be really different in the case of Greenland. I suspect a lot of pushback from the European Union and also in the case -- in the case of Colombia.

CHURCH: Mariano De Alba, thank you so much for joining us and sharing your analysis. Appreciate it.

DE ALBA: Thank you.

CHURCH: Still to come, what some lawmakers are saying about the legitimacy of the Venezuela operation and if congressional approval was required. Plus, President Trump casts doubt on the future of the popular opposition leader in a post-Maduro government. All that and more when we come back.

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[02:15:00]

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CHURCH: Sources tell CNN the Trump administration is set to brief a select group of bipartisan lawmakers on Venezuela in a classified meeting on Monday night. Now this comes as the White House is being criticized by some lawmakers who say the Venezuela operation should have had congressional approval. But U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is pushing back against those claims. CNN's Camila DeChalus has more from Washington on how some lawmakers are reacting.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CAMILA DECHALUS, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Democrats on Capitol Hill are raising serious concerns about what just happened in Venezuela and the military actions that the Trump administration took.

Now, number one, they argue that under the current U.S. law, Congress is supposed to be notified in advance when any president plans a major military operation abroad. And they say that in this case, that did not happen. Now, the second thing I've been hearing from a lot of Democrats is that they're arguing that this could set a very dangerous precedent. And they're really saying, some senators like Tim Kaine, who talked to reporters just the other day, he said that he's concerned that the Trump administration's latest actions could encourage other global superpowers like Russia or Iran to take similar aggressive actions and that could further destabilize conflicts abroad.

Now, the Trump administration on their end, they've really pushed back on these criticisms and even -- I've talked to some Republican lawmakers who argued that if the Trump administration deliberately chose not to notify lawmakers, that was OK because, honestly, them telling lawmakers in advance, that could have led to any leaks in the press and that could have compromised their mission and potentially put U.S. troops in danger.

Now, it's also worth noting that this upcoming week, the Senate is expected to vote on a bipartisan war powers resolution. Now, this resolution would seek to limit the president's ability to take any further military actions in Venezuela or even abroad just without congressional approval, that he would need congressional authorization first, and that is something that we are now going to be diligently following and seeing whether this resolution will get enough votes.

Camila DeChalus, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Senate Democrat Chris Coons says one of the most frustrating points about the Venezuela operation is that the administration had previously downplayed their motivations in the region.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE): What is alarming to me, what has angered me and many others of my colleagues, is that President Trump and his senior national security team wasn't open and honest with us about their plans. For months, they said that the strikes against the boats in the southern Caribbean were all about drug trafficking and drug interdiction, and they had no plan for overthrowing Maduro or for sending the U.S. military into Venezuela.

Now that they have done so, sent the military in, captured Maduro, returned him to the United States, it seems today, they're just making this up as they go along.

President Trump has no more well-developed plan for how to lead or govern or manage Venezuela than he does how to deliver health care for the American people or how to move forward in resolving the war in Ukraine or the suffering of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. There are too many circumstances where they're making it up as they go along.

And we will have a vote in the Senate this week to require congressional consent for any ongoing larger scale military action because in recent times when we've overthrown dictators, whether in Libya or in Iraq, with no clear plan for what would happen afterwards, the consequences were terrible for the people of the country and costly for the American service members who we ended up asking to go in and fix it once we'd broken it.

What I didn't hear from President Trump or, frankly, Secretary Hegseth or Secretary Rubio was a press for political prisoners to be released, for there to be recognition of the opposition leader who won the Nobel Peace Prize, for there to be free and fair elections or a peaceful transition.

Most of what President Trump has focused on is access to their oil and threatening the current leadership with further military action. That's what's opening the door to a very risky next chapter with no clear plan from this administration.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The U.S. is suggesting it will have the final say in who will lead Venezuela. President Trump says Venezuelan opposition leader and this year's Nobel Peace Prize winner, Maria Corina Machado, lacks the respect to lead the post-Maduro government.

[02:19:58]

Earlier, our Jim Sciutto spoke with Venezuelan opposition politician and advisor to Machado, David Smolansky, on President Trump's assessment. Here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID SMOLANSKY, VENEZUELAN OPPOSITION POLITICIAN: With respect to President Trump, Maria Corina Machado is the most trusted leader in Venezuela. She has got all the legitimacy when she won a primary with 93 percent of the vote, then when she endorsed President-elect Edmundo Gonzalez after she was illegally banned from running president with 70 percent of the outcome. And she's very capable, she's brave, she's courageous. She was in hiding for over a year.

And I don't have any doubt that she's going to be with President-elect Edmundo Gonzalez, the leaders of the rebuilding of Venezuela where, obviously, the U.S. is going to be our main allies, and we will have plenty of other allies in Latin America and Europe and beyond. But Maria Corina Machado is a leader who is out of this world. And she's got the support from almost every Venezuelan.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: But if she doesn't have support of the U.S. president, how does she have a viable path to power?

SMOLANSKY: Well, she has a valuable path to power because she got the support of the people. She has got legitimacy not once, but twice, as I said, within the primary in 2023 and then the July 28 election 2024. And then she has led a resistance chapter that contributed, I have to say, contributed for where we are right now.

And I have to say, Jim, and sorry if I'm taking a bit more time on this answer, the support that we're having not only from the U.S. but from many, many governments across the world. We're having support in Latin America, from Argentina, Paraguay, Ecuador, just to mention three of them, Panama. In Europe, we have the support of the U.K., France, Italy, and the vast majority of the E.U. members, Israel, Morocco, New Zealand, Korea, Australia.

So, the support that Maria Corina Machado is having and the democratic movement is having is global.

SCIUTTO: OK.

SMOLANSKY: And it has been very, very important to get this point.

SCIUTTO: In your contacts with the administration since this operation to remove Maduro, have you received any assurances from the Trump administration about the role of the opposition?

SMOLANSKY: They know what we have done. They know what we have achieved. They know the efforts that we have made. I also have to say that something that we have come up is that there still are in Venezuela more than 800 political prisoners, the majority suffering from psychological tortures and physical tortures.

And something that I need to add, Jim, is that Delcy Rodriguez, the person who is trying to remain in power, she's a member of the cartel. She's sanctioned here in the U.S., Switzerland, Canada, the European Union. She has been one of the enablers of the biggest money laundering scheme and corruption that you have ever seen, not only in Venezuela, but in whole Latin America. And she has been one of the masterminds of rigged elections in Venezuela. And I have to say that she's a communist as well.

So, again, on that regard, she's also responsible of those political prisoners. And I think it's very important to release them as soon as possible.

SCIUTTO: Rodriguez has changed her rhetoric to some degree in the last 24 hours, initially condemning the operation, but more recently saying Venezuela has the right to peace, to development, to sovereignty, to a future. And President Trump, at least, has not taken off the table the possibility of her remaining in power if she abides by American pressure, it seems.

Are you concerned that she might supplant Machado and the opposition? In other words, that the Trump administration could live with Delcy Rodriguez as the leader as long as she cooperates with the U.S.?

SMOLANSKY: That won't be possible because, again, she's a member of the Cartel de los Soles, Suns Cartel. I have to say that before, she was the legitimate vice president, she was a foreign ministry, and she worked for a lot of years on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She was one of the masterminds of open Venezuelan doors to China and Russia. She's someone that you cannot trust because she has participated in negotiations, tables, and dialogue in the past. And she doesn't have a word. And this administration knows that.

[02:24:57] I understand that transitions are messy, that sometimes, you have to deal with people that are completely different from what you think. But the legitimacy is on the side of Maria Corina Machado. The leadership is on Maria Corina Machado. The support of the people is on Maria Corina Machado. And we will be, you know, doing some actions and statements during the next days that people will support.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Meantime, Denmark's prime minister is pushing back after President Donald Trump said Sunday that the U.S. needs Greenland.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We need Greenland from a national security situation. It is so strategic. Right now, Greenland is covered with Russian and Chinese ships all over the place. We need Greenland from the standpoint of national security. And Denmark is not going to be able to do it. I can tell you that. The European Union needs us to have it, and they know that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen says the U.S. has -- quote -- "no right to take over Greenland" and added, "I will therefore strongly urge that the USA stops the threats against a historically close ally and against another country and another people, who have made it very clear that they are not for sale."

After the U.S. operation in Venezuela, the wife of Trump official, Stephen Miller, posted to social media an image of Greenland with an American flag overlaid and the word "soon." Talk of the U.S. annexing Greenland has existed throughout Trump's second presidency.

We will have more of our breaking news coverage in just a moment, including the latest on President Trump's claim that the U.S. is now running Venezuela. Plus, Trump warned Colombia and Greenland could be next. When we come back, what the U.S. actions in Venezuela could mean for the region and the global order. You're watching CNN.

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[02:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everyone.

Returning now to our top story. President Trump is claiming the U.S. is in charge of Venezuela and will run the country after capturing ousted leader Nicolas Maduro this weekend. The U.S. operation will be the focus of a un security council meeting in the hours ahead.

Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez is now extending an invitation to the U.S. government to collaborate on a, quote, agenda of cooperation. Earlier, while speaking with reporters aboard Air Force One, President Trump insisted his voters support this style of hard diplomacy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The voters that voted for me are thrilled, they said. This is what we voted for.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Maduro is scheduled to make his first court appearance in New York City on Monday. That's in the coming hours. And top Trump administration officials are expected to brief a select group of bipartisan lawmakers on the situation in Venezuela.

CNN's Paula Newton has the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A new day in Caracas. And with it, mounting questions about what's next for Venezuela. Its ousted leader, Nicolas Maduro, is in U.S. custody awaiting his first appearance in a Manhattan federal court on drugs and weapons charges. And details of the U.S. role in Venezuela are still evolving after a stunning claim by U.S. President Donald Trump made soon after Maduro's capture.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.

NEWTON: On Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio tried to explain one of the ways that would be done, saying the U.S. would be, quote, running policy.

MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: What's going to happen here is that we have a quarantine on their oil. That means their economy will not be able to move forward until the conditions that are in the national interest of the United States and the interest of the Venezuelan people are met, and that's what we intend to do. So that leverage remains, that leverage is ongoing, and we expect that it's going to lead to results here.

NEWTON: But Venezuela has taken its own steps to fill its power void. Saturday, the country's Supreme Court ordered Maduro's vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, to assume the role of acting president of the country. And Rodriguez, a Maduro loyalist, has said the U.S. actions violated the country's sovereignty.

But Trump says there has been communication between the U.S. and Rodriguez, and she is willing to work with Washington. There was little sign of detente on Sunday from Venezuela's defense minister, who demanded Maduro's return.

VLADIMIR PADRINO LOPEZ, VENEZUELAN DEFENSE MINISTER: It was an act of cowardice, but it also represents a threat to the world order.

NEWTON: There have been crowds of government supporters in Caracas also calling for Maduro's release, but for the most part, the streets of Caracas are quiet as Venezuelans hunker down, uncertain about the path ahead and who will really be running their country.

Paula Newton, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Joining us live from berlin is Steven Erlanger, "The New York Times" chief diplomatic correspondent in Europe.

Thanks so much for being with us.

STEVEN ERLANGER, CHIEF DIPLOMATIC CORRESPONDENT IN EUROPE, THE NEW YORK TIMES: Of course.

CHURCH: So, the U.S. military operation in Venezuela has shocked the world, with many concerned about President Trump's announcement that the U.S. will now run Venezuela and take over the country's oil reserves. Secretary of State Marco Rubio tried walking back some of this by talking more about leverage over policy, not occupation.

Where do you see this going next, and what are the geopolitical ramifications?

ERLANGER: Well, it is, I must say, very confusing. Confusing for Venezuelans, let alone for Americans and everybody else. I don't know how you run a country from afar. That's clear. The U.S. has no intention of occupying Venezuela. It is trying to force the remnants of the Maduro regime to play ball with it.

But they have to be careful, too. The new president could get assassinated if she does too much to help Donald Trump. I mean, there are lots of Maduro supporters still. There are people who are angry at this at this intervention. You heard in your own report, the defense minister's anger.

So, it's very dodgy. And to, you know, restore the Venezuelan oil industry, for instance, it's going to take years. This is nothing that happens tomorrow. You can do a quick military raid that's, you know, very efficiently done, but it doesn't solve the problem. It just removes like the guy sitting on top of the volcano and he's gone. Then the volcano erupts, and then you look at the volcano erupting and you go, oh, wow, isn't that amazing?

[02:35:00]

CHURCH: Yeah. Let's look at Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodriguez. Initially, she denounced the actions of the U.S., but is now extending this invitation to the U.S. government to collaborate on an agenda of cooperation after President Trump threatened that she would pay a very big price if she didn't cooperate.

So, what do you think Rodriguez will do in the end, and how long might she last as acting president?

ERLANGER: It's hard to know. I mean, I think she will, you know, try to keep the Americans from doing anything more in Venezuela. I mean, certainly there are, you know, a lot of people very happy. Maduro is gone. Maduro and she stole the election last time.

What's interesting is that the Americans have no interest in putting the people who won the election. The opposition, into power. They've judged they're too weak, so they're going to work with the remnants of the Maduro regime in this sort of mafia like style, which is like, do what -- do what we want, or there's going to be trouble. And this will work for a while, I think. But will it work for the years to come? I have no idea.

CHURCH: So, what do you think President Trump means when he says the U.S. will run Venezuela until a safe transition is made? And what do you make of his suggestion that Greenland and Colombia could be next?

ERLANGER: Well, I'm not sure even Trump knows what he means by running the country, to be honest. You can hear it in Marco Rubio's attempt to put substance behind this assertion.

The Greenland thing is really, I think, scary for a lot of Europeans and for NATO. I mean, Denmark is a NATO ally.

Now, this all comes from a sort of, from an X posting by Steve Miller's wife. You know, Steve Miller is a very important figure in in the White House. And it had Greenland painted with an American flag.

And this prompted the Danish prime minister, Mette Frederiksen, yesterday to warn the Americans, just stop talking about Greenland. And Greenland belongs to us. And of course, you know, it should be remembered, U.S. has good relations with Denmark and with Greenland and can do in security terms in Greenland, pretty much whatever it wants. The Danes would be very happy if the Americans did more for Greenland's security.

So, you know, this is, you can't -- I can't get at Trump's mind. Trump may do something radical tomorrow. The point about Venezuela, in a way, was it's in Latin America. He did have the vaguely legal argument about drug dealing, which is what the Americans use against Noriega in Panama in 1989. And it is true that Maduro was very much in bed with the Cubans, the Chinese and the Russians, which I think was an important part of what the Americans wanted to fix. And they're worried about migration.

So, for all these reasons, I think Venezuela is an easier target. I mean, you may be interested in Cuba, Greenland, I think, would be a step too far, but you never know with Donald Trump, I have to say.

CHURCH: And, Steven, declaring Maduro an illegitimate, illegitimate leader would, of course, suggest all those in Maduros government are also illegitimate. So, what exactly has been achieved here, and do you think this is solely about us? Access to oil? Because it's not total regime change, isn't it? It's just cutting the head off the snake here.

ERLANGER: Well, exactly. I mean, so talking about Maduro is illegitimate. It means the woman who was elected with him, Delcy Rodriguez, is also illegitimate. But as I say, the Americans are not interested. It seems, in working with the opposition parties that did win the election because they're not in Venezuela, they're not on the ground. And so, they're considered too weak.

So, you know, I don't know, I think it's crude to say it's only about oil. You know, America has tons of oil. It's not really the big issue to me. It is in Trump's head. Trump's always been obsessed with oil in Iraq and everywhere else.

But I think for the more military minded people, it was a lot about pushing back Cuban, Russian, Chinese influence in the hemisphere in Latin America. And this is when Trump talks about Greenland. That's what he actually talks about, which is that, you know, the worry is all these Chinese and Russian ships and submarines who move past Greenland.

[02:40:03]

So I think, you know, Trump is always interested in as he is, you know, with Gaza in, you know, making sure the U.S. is reimbursed or in Ukraine that its reimbursed somehow. He has to think of everything as a kind of deal. But I don't think, you know as much oil as there is in Venezuela. It would take years to actually get it going better.

And I don't know how much patience anyone has in the Trump administration to be running Venezuela.

CHURCH: Steven Erlanger, thank you so much for joining us. Appreciate it.

ERLANGER: Thank you.

CHURCH: And still to come, major protests erupt across many parts of the globe following the capture of Nicolas Maduro. Up next, how some in Latin America are viewing the United States' actions.

Plus, President Trump wants the U.S. to rebuild Venezuela's oil industry. We'll take a look at the impact the U.S. operation is having on global oil prices. Back with that and more in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone.

While some across the U.S. are protesting against the military action taken in Venezuela, there are others who support it

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

CHURCH: This was the scene in Atlanta as Venezuelans who had fled Nicolas Maduros' regime rejoiced at his capture. Some of them told CNN that they have hope for hope for their country now that Maduro is gone.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

CHURCH: And Venezuelans living in Mexico City say rebuilding the country should be the next step so they can return home.

But in Latin American countries, many are rallying in support of Nicolas Maduro.

CNN's Juan Carlos Lopez has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go home, Gringo, go home.

JUAN CARLOS LOPEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Anger from a group on the streets of Colombia's capital city.,

CROWD: Yankee, hitman, out of my neighborhood!

LOPEZ (voice-over): Solidarity after the U.S. captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro from his compound in Caracas. It's an attack many in Latin America feel is far too close to home. Trump has accused Maduros government of flooding the U.S. with drugs, an accusation that has long been leveled at other countries in Latin America, too.

Colombia, Venezuela's next door neighbor is also the largest recipient of that country's refugees, with over 2.8 million in a 2024 count. The possibility of a new surge worries the government so much that more than 30,000 Colombian troops are now positioned along its border with Venezuela.

MARTHA ELENA HUERTAS, PROTESTER: As a Latin American woman, we want to tell the world that we are absolutely and unequivocally rejecting this criminal, murderous, colonialist invasion and invading, plundering act by the decadent U.S. empire.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I feel that this was something many people were expecting, especially the Venezuelan people. However, we have to see to what extent international law is respected.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Many people from Venezuela are going through great hardship because of that regime, and the kind of dictatorship that existed. I'm happy and I support the United States in this attack.

LOPEZ (voice-over): In Rome, people gathered Sunday to listen as Pope Leo expressed deep concern for Venezuela. The U.S. born pope with extensive ties to Latin America, called for Venezuela's independence to be protected among bystanders and passersby. Reactions were mixed.

CLARA PERES SOLANO, MEXICAN TOURIST: As a Mexican first acknowledged, Trump's great achievement. However, I'm a little scared by his desire to dominate everything he's talking about regarding oil.

CIELO CELESTE, PERUVIAN TOURIST: But finally, the dictatorship is gone. Thank God. As they say, Trump took a firm hand and dragged him away.

LOPEZ (voice-over): For Venezuela and its neighbors, who have taken in refugees by the thousands and witnessed their struggles firsthand, there is hope for relief. SANDRA, CHILEAN RESIDENT: I'm happy for them because they're going to

get to go back to their country. Well, they won't leave immediately because I'm not going to let them go so quickly.

LOPEZ (voice-over): In Latin America, many are still holding their breath. Maduro is gone. But for now, those close to him remain in power before the region's millions of displaced Venezuelans, they return home. Still isn't on the cards.

Juan Carlos Lopez, CNN, Miami.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: The U.S. operation in Venezuela hasn't had a big impact on global oil prices. They fell only slightly on Sunday because traders don't think they'll be significant impact on supply.

Venezuela has the world's largest oil reserves, but it only produces a million barrels a day, and it exports just over half that. That's less than 1 percent of the world's overall production.

Earlier oil expert, Bob McNally, explained why oil traders were unmoved by the U.S. action in Venezuela

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOB MCNALLY, PRESIDENT, RAPIDAN GROUP: What it says is, is that while Venezuela is a whale when it comes to reserves of oil in the ground, it is a minnow. When it comes to producing and exporting oil in the global oil market that determines the price of gasoline you and I pay at the pump.

So, Venezuela is just simply too small. There hasn't been a meaningful disruption really. Not much has changed. And so, the oil markets are sort of yawning.

Venezuela really matters. For after the Trump administration is over with, it matters for 2030, 2035 because only in coming years will we begin to see if everything goes well. Millions of barrels, more of oil, Venezuelan oil production. It's really a long term prize, not a near-term factor.

We have a template. We have a history. 20, 25 years ago, U.S. companies were in Venezuela. Exxon was there, ConocoPhillips was there. Chevron is still there.

What we need is a government that would come in and sort of repeat the opening that Venezuela went through in the mid-1990s, where it still kept the sector nationalized to a great degree, but it opened the sector to foreign companies to come in and invest and make money. So, it's really a return to that period when U.S. companies and with U.S. companies, we got Venezuela up to 3 million barrels a day or more. So now they're producing a little, little less than a third of that. So really it's a return to the mid-1990s.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: Still to come, a closer look at the timeline of the U.S. operation in Venezuela and the covert intel that led to the military's pinpoint accuracy.

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[02:53:13]

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone.

U.S. officials are now offering a clearer picture of the operation to capture Nicolas Maduro. Sources tell CNN the CIA had secretly been tracking his every move since August.

CNN's Natasha Bertrand lays out a detailed timeline of how the assault unfolded.

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NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: The U.S. military conducted a highly complex operation that had been months in the making to capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife in a nighttime raid on a compound that he had been hiding in in Caracas. Now, according to the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, General Dan Caine, that operation commenced at 10:46 p.m. on Friday night when President Trump gave the go ahead for the U.S. military to commence this operation. At that point, at -- from roughly 20 bases on land and at sea, aircraft took off roughly 150 aircraft moving towards Venezuela.

Now included in that was helicopters that were carrying an extraction force, which included delta force, a highly specialized elite unit within the U.S. military, as well as FBI agents who were going to help in the capture and arrest of Maduro. Now they began their flight into Venezuela and over Caracas and they were flying extremely low at about 100 feet above the sea. They were protected overhead by a lot of air power, and that included air power from the marines, the navy, the air force, as well as the air national guard. And it included F-22s, F- 35s, F-18s, E-2s and B-1 bombers and drones. So just a massive presence protecting these helicopters that had this extraction force.

Now, as the force approached Caracas, the U.S. military's joint force actually began dismantling Venezuela's air defense systems so that those helicopters would have a clear path towards that compound that Maduro was hiding in, according to General Caine.

[02:55:11]

Now, as that helicopter force moved towards the compound at around 1:00 a.m. Eastern Time, those helicopters did come under fire. According to Caine and one of those helicopters was in fact hit. It was not downed, however, and it was able to continue flying and continue the mission.

Now, at that point, the special operators who were inside one of the helicopters, they descended into the compound. They were able to locate Maduro and his wife, who themselves tried to hide behind a steel door inside that compound, but they were unable to close that door before U.S. forces reached them. That's according to President Trump.

Now, ultimately, Maduro and his wife did give up. The whole thing took about five minutes, according to U.S. military officials. He was then extracted from the compound and flown back to the USS Iwo Jima, where he was detained by U.S. military forces before, of course, then being transferred to New York, where he is now awaiting a court date on Monday morning.

Now, throughout all of this, no U.S. military forces were killed. However, several were injured. They have bullet wounds, shrapnel wounds. However, we're told that they are in stable condition and they are expected to recover.

Natasha Bertrand, CNN in Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: U.S. airlines are scrambling to add flights to the Caribbean after Saturdays military operation in Venezuela disrupted travel. The FAA temporarily closed airspace in the region, leading to hundreds of flight cancellations from popular tourist spots like Aruba and Puerto Rico. Those restrictions have been lifted, but airlines are now playing catch up during one of the busiest travel times of the year.

Delta, United, Southwest, American Airlines and JetBlue all say they're working to add more flights to get travelers where they need to go.

I want to thank you so much for joining us this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. I will be back with more CNN's breaking news coverage after a short break. Stay with us.

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