President Donald Trump indicated Sunday that Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has expressed interest in negotiations with the United States, even as the administration maintains the option of targeting cartel infrastructure in the embattled South American nation.
Speaking to reporters before departing West Palm Beach aboard Air Force One, the president made clear that while no land-based military strikes have been planned or authorized, recent designations of Venezuelan-linked cartels provide his administration with expanded authority to act against Maduro’s assets and infrastructure should circumstances warrant such measures.
“It allows us to do that,” Trump stated. “But we haven’t said we’re going to do that. We may be having some discussions with Maduro, and we’ll see how that turns out. They would like to talk.”
The president’s comments come amid escalating tensions between Washington and Caracas, centered primarily on drug trafficking operations that the administration contends flow through Venezuelan territory with the Maduro regime’s tacit approval. Trump has consistently maintained that Venezuela, along with Mexico, serves as a critical transit point for narcotics entering American communities.
The administration has briefed members of Congress on its ongoing efforts to disrupt these trafficking networks, though Trump emphasized that such communication serves an informational rather than authorization-seeking purpose. The president said he instructed Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior officials to convey to lawmakers that the United States will not tolerate continued narcotics flow through either Venezuela or Mexico.
“We like to keep Congress involved,” Trump explained. “I mean, we’re stopping drug dealers and drugs from coming into our country.”
The president did, however, issue a pointed warning to congressional members regarding operational security. He stressed that while his administration supports appropriate transparency with the legislative branch, the unauthorized disclosure of classified information could endanger American military personnel and intelligence operatives conducting sensitive operations.
“The only thing I don’t want them to do is leak information that’s very important and confidential,” Trump said. “And they put our military at risk or whoever is doing, you know, CIA, military, etc.”
According to the president, several allied nations have aligned themselves with American efforts to pressure the Maduro government. Trump characterized this international cooperation as part of a comprehensive campaign against both narcotics trafficking and illegal immigration, two issues he has consistently linked to instability in Venezuela.
The administration has accused the Maduro regime of deliberately releasing violent criminals from Venezuelan prisons with the expectation that many would ultimately make their way to the United States. Trump stated that his administration has prioritized the identification and removal of such individuals from American soil.
The diplomatic opening Trump described represents a potentially significant development in relations that have remained hostile throughout Maduro’s tenure. Whether substantive negotiations materialize remains uncertain, but the president’s willingness to acknowledge the possibility suggests his administration may be exploring multiple avenues to address what it views as Venezuela’s destabilizing role in regional security and the American drug crisis.
The situation continues to develop as the administration balances diplomatic overtures with maintained pressure on a regime it has consistently characterized as both corrupt and dangerous to American interests.
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