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00:00:00
and we appreciate you being here.00:00:05
Late last night and early today00:00:09
at my direction, the United States armed00:00:14
forces conducted an extraordinary00:00:17
military operation in the capital of00:00:21
Venezuela.00:00:23
overwhelming American military power.00:00:26
Air, land, and sea was used to launch a00:00:29
spectacular assault.00:00:32
And it was a an assault like people have00:00:34
not seen since00:00:36
World War II.00:00:39
It was a force against a heavily00:00:42
fortified military fortress in the heart00:00:44
of Caracus00:00:46
to bring outlaw dictator Nicholas Maduro00:00:49
to justice.00:00:51
This was one of the most stunning,00:00:55
effective, and powerful displays of00:00:57
American military might and competence00:01:02
in American history.00:01:04
And if you think about it, we've done00:01:06
some other good ones like the00:01:10
attack on Solomaini,00:01:14
the attack on Albaghaghdadi,00:01:18
and the obliteration and decimation of00:01:22
the Iran nuclear sites00:01:24
just recently00:01:27
in an operation known as Midnight00:01:29
Hammer.00:01:32
All perfectly executed and done. No00:01:36
nation in the world could achieve what00:01:39
America achieved yesterday or frankly in00:01:42
just a short period of time.00:01:45
All Venezuelan military capacities were00:01:49
rendered perilous as the men and women00:01:51
of our military working with US law00:01:54
enforcement successfully captured Maduro00:01:57
in the dead of night. It was dark. The00:02:03
uh lights of Caracus were largely turned00:02:07
off00:02:08
due to a certain expertise that we have.00:02:13
It was dark and it was deadly.00:02:18
But captured along with his wife00:02:22
Celia Flores,00:02:25
both of whom now face American justice.00:02:29
Maduro and Flores have been indicted in00:02:32
the Southern District of New York. It's00:02:35
Jay Clayton for their campaign of deadly00:02:38
naroterrorism against the United States00:02:41
and its citizens.00:02:44
I want to thank the men and women of our00:02:46
military who achieved such an00:02:47
extraordinary success overnight00:02:50
with breathtaking speed, power,00:02:52
precision, and competence.00:02:55
You rarely see anything like it. You've00:02:57
seen some raids in this country that00:02:58
didn't go so well. They were an00:03:01
embarrassment. If you look back to00:03:03
Afghanistan or if you look back to00:03:06
the Jimmy Carter days, they were00:03:09
different days. We're a respected00:03:11
country again like maybe like never00:03:13
before.00:03:15
These highly trained warriors operating00:03:17
in collaboration with US law enforcement00:03:21
caught them in a very ready position.00:03:24
They were waiting for us. They knew we00:03:26
had many ships out00:03:28
in the sea just sort of waiting. They00:03:31
knew we were coming. So they were in a00:03:33
ready, what's called a ready position,00:03:37
but they were completely overwhelmed and00:03:40
very quickly incapacitated.00:03:44
If you would have seen what I saw last00:03:46
night, you would have been very00:03:47
impressed. I'm not sure that you'll ever00:03:48
get to see it, but it was an incredible00:03:51
thing to see.00:03:52
Not a single American service member was00:03:55
killed and not a single piece of00:03:57
American equipment was lost. We had many00:04:01
helicopters, many planes, many many00:04:04
people involved in that fight. But think00:04:08
of that, not one piece of military00:04:09
equipment was lost. Not one service00:04:13
member was more importantly killed. The00:04:15
United States military is the strongest00:04:18
and most fearsome military on the planet00:04:20
by far with capabilities and skills our00:04:23
enemies can00:04:25
scarcely begin to imagine. We have the00:04:27
best equipment anywhere in the world.00:04:30
There's no equipment like what we have.00:04:32
And you see that even if you just look00:04:34
at the boats, you know, we've knocked00:04:36
out 97% of the drugs coming in by sea.00:04:41
90%. Each boat kills 25 on average00:04:44
25,000 people. We knocked out 97%.00:04:49
And those drugs mostly come from place00:04:52
called Venezuela.00:04:54
We're going to run the country until00:04:56
such time as we can do a safe, proper,00:05:00
and judicious00:05:02
transition. So, we don't want to be00:05:04
involved with uh having somebody else00:05:07
get in. And we have the same situation00:05:10
that we had for the last long period of00:05:12
years. So we are going to run the00:05:14
country until such time as we can do a00:05:17
safe, proper and judicious00:05:20
transition. And it has to be judicious00:05:25
because that's what we're all about. We00:05:27
want peace, liberty, and justice for the00:05:30
great people of Venezuela.00:05:33
And that includes many from Venezuela00:05:35
that are now living in the United States00:05:38
and want to go back to their country.00:05:41
It's their homeland.00:05:43
We can't take a chance and somebody else00:05:45
takes over Venezuela that doesn't have00:05:48
the good of the Venezuelan people in00:05:50
mind.00:05:51
We've had decades of that. We're not00:05:55
going to let that happen.00:05:58
We're there now. And what people don't00:06:01
understand, but they understand as a as00:06:03
I say this, we're there now, but we're00:06:08
going to stay until such time as the pro00:06:11
proper transition can take place. So,00:06:14
we're going to stay until such time as00:06:16
we're going to run it essentially until00:06:17
such time as a proper transition can00:06:20
take place.00:06:22
As everyone knows, the oil business in00:06:24
Venezuela has been a bust, a total bust00:06:27
for a long period of time.00:06:30
They were pumping almost nothing by00:06:32
comparison to what they could have been00:06:35
pumping and what could have taken place.00:06:39
We're going to have our very large00:06:42
United States oil companies, the biggest00:06:45
anywhere in the world, go in, spend00:06:48
billions of dollars, fix the badly00:06:51
broken infrastructure, the oil00:06:53
infrastructure,00:06:55
and start making money for the country.00:06:58
and we are00:07:00
ready to stage a second and much larger00:07:03
attack if00:07:05
we need to do so. So, we were prepared00:07:07
to do a second wave00:07:11
if00:07:13
we needed to do so. We actually assumed00:07:15
that a second wave would be necessary,00:07:18
but now it's probably not. the first00:07:21
wave, if you'd like to call it that. The00:07:23
first attack was so successful, we00:07:25
probably don't have to do a second, but00:07:26
we're prepared to do a second wave. A00:07:29
much bigger wave, actually.00:07:32
This was pinpoint, but we have a much00:07:34
bigger wave that00:07:36
probably won't have to do. this00:07:38
partnership of Venezuela with the United00:07:40
States of America, a country that00:07:42
everybody wants to be in involved with00:07:45
because of what we were able to do and00:07:48
accomplish, will make the people of00:07:50
Venezuela rich, independent, and safe.00:07:54
And it will also make the many, many00:07:57
people from Venezuela that are living in00:08:00
the United States extremely happy. They00:08:02
suffered. They suffered. So much was00:08:05
taken from them. They're not going to00:08:07
suffer anymore.00:08:09
The illegitimate dictator Maduro was the00:08:11
kingpin of a vast criminal network00:08:13
responsible for trafficking colossal00:08:16
amounts of deadly and elicit drugs into00:08:19
the United States. As alleged in the00:08:22
indictment, he personally oversaw the00:08:25
vicious cartel known as cartel de las00:08:29
solless00:08:31
which flooded our nation with lethal00:08:33
poison responsible for the deaths of00:08:36
countless Americans. The many many00:08:38
Americans, hundreds of thousands over00:08:40
the years of Americans died because of00:08:43
him. Maduro and his wife will soon face00:08:46
the full might of American justice and00:08:49
stand trial on American soil.00:08:52
Right now, they're on a ship. They'll be00:08:55
heading to ultimately New York and then00:08:58
a decision will be made, I assume,00:09:00
between New York and00:09:03
Miami or Florida.00:09:06
But we have uh00:09:09
people where the overwhelming evidence00:09:11
of their crimes will be presented in a00:09:14
court of law. And uh I've seen it. I've00:09:18
seen what we have. It's uh00:09:21
it's both horrible and breathtaking that00:09:23
something like this could have been00:09:25
allowed to take place. For many years00:09:27
after his term as president of Venezuela00:09:31
expired, Maduro00:09:33
remained in power and waged a ceaseless00:09:37
campaign of violence, terror, and00:09:40
subversion against the United States of00:09:42
America, threatening not only our00:09:44
people, but the stability of the entire00:09:46
region. And you all saw it. In addition00:09:48
to trafficking gigantic amounts of00:09:51
illegal drugs that inflicted untold00:09:54
suffering and human destruction all over00:09:57
the country, all over in particular the00:10:00
United States. Maduro sent savage and00:10:03
murderous gangs including the00:10:04
bloodthirsty prison gang trend dearagua00:10:08
to terrorize American communities00:10:10
nationwide. And he did indeed. They were00:10:12
in Colorado. They took over apartment00:10:15
complexes. They cut the fingers off00:10:17
people if they call police. They were00:10:20
brutal,00:10:22
but they're not so brutal now. And I00:10:24
just have to congratulate our military,00:10:27
Pete, and everybody and our National00:10:30
Guard because the job that they've done,00:10:32
whether it's in Washington DC, where we00:10:34
have a totally safe city, where it was00:10:37
one of the most unsafe cities anywhere00:10:40
in the world, frankly, and now we have00:10:42
no crime in Washington DC. We haven't00:10:46
had a killing. We had the terrorist00:10:49
attack a few weeks ago.00:10:51
Uh a little bit of a different kind of a00:10:55
a threat, but we haven't had a killing00:10:57
in a long period of time, six, seven00:11:00
months. We used to have two on average00:11:03
two a week in Washington, our capital.00:11:05
We don't have that anymore. The00:11:08
restaurants are opening. Everyone's00:11:09
happy. They're going, they're walking00:11:11
their daughters. They're walking their00:11:13
children, their wives. as they walk to00:11:16
restaurants. Restaurants are opening all00:11:17
over Washington DC. So, I want to thank00:11:20
the National Guard. I want to thank our00:11:22
military and I want to thank law00:11:23
enforcement. Been amazing. And they00:11:26
should do it with more cities. We're00:11:28
doing it as you know. And uh we're doing00:11:30
it in Memphis, Tennessee right now. And00:11:33
crime is down. We've just sort of00:11:35
started a few weeks ago, but crime is00:11:37
down now 77%.00:11:40
And uh the governor of Louisiana called00:11:43
great person and he wanted us to help00:11:47
him as you know and a certain very nice00:11:50
part of Louisiana00:11:54
and we have done that. It's a rough it00:11:56
was a rough rough section and we have00:11:59
climbed down I I understand it's down to00:12:01
almost nothing already after two and a00:12:03
half weeks. New Orleans. It's down to00:12:06
almost nothing and we've only been there00:12:08
for two and a half weeks. Can't imagine00:12:11
why governors wouldn't want us to help.00:12:13
We also helped, as you know, in Chicago00:12:16
and crime went down a little bit there.00:12:18
We did a very small help because we had00:12:20
no no uh we had no working ability with00:12:25
the governor. The governor was a00:12:26
disaster and the mayor was a disaster,00:12:28
but it knocked down Crown. But we're00:12:30
pulling out of there when when they need00:12:31
us. We'll know. You'll know. you'll be00:12:34
writing about it. And likewise, Los00:12:36
Angeles where we saved Los Angeles early00:12:39
on where the head of the police00:12:42
department made a statement that if the00:12:45
federal government didn't come in, we00:12:46
would have lost Los Angeles. That's00:12:48
after long after the fires. That's when00:12:51
they had the riots in Los. We did a00:12:53
great job. Got no credit for it00:12:54
whatsoever. But that's okay. It doesn't00:12:56
matter. We don't need the credit.00:12:58
But we'll be pulling out when they need00:13:00
us. They'll call or we'll go back if we00:13:01
have to. We'll go back. But we did a00:13:04
great job in various cities. But the00:13:07
thing, the place that we're very proud00:13:09
of is Washington DC because it's our00:13:11
nation's capital. We took it from being00:13:13
a crimeridden mess to being one of the00:13:16
safest cities in the country. But the00:13:19
gangs that they sent raped, tortured,00:13:22
and murdered American women and00:13:24
children. They were in all of the cities00:13:26
I mentioned, Trend Aaragua,00:13:29
and they were sent by Maduro to00:13:32
terrorize our people. And now Maduro00:13:34
will never again be able to threaten an00:13:38
American citizen or anybody from00:13:41
Venezuela. There will no longer be00:13:43
threats. For years, I've highlighted the00:13:45
stories of those innocent American whose00:13:48
lives00:13:49
were so heartlessly robbed by this00:13:52
Venezuelan terrorist organization.00:13:55
Really one of the worst. One of the00:13:56
worst. They say the worst. Americans00:13:59
like 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungarry from00:14:02
Houston. Beautiful Joselyn then Gary.00:14:05
What happened to her?00:14:09
They uh as you know they kidnapped,00:14:11
assaulted and murdered by Trendair Ragua00:14:16
animals. They murdered Jocelyn00:14:19
and00:14:21
left her dead under the bridge. There00:14:23
was a bridge,00:14:25
a bridge that will never be the same to00:14:28
so many people after seeing what00:14:29
happened. As I've said many times, the00:14:32
Maduro regime emptied out their prisons,00:14:35
sent their worst and most violent00:14:36
monsters into the United States to steal00:14:39
American lives. And they came from00:14:43
mental institutions and insane asylums.00:14:46
They came from prisons and jails. The00:14:49
reason I say both, they sound similar.00:14:50
Actually, prisons00:14:53
little bit more,00:14:55
a little bit more hostile, a little bit00:14:56
tougher. A mental institution isn't as00:15:00
tough as an insane asylum. But we got00:15:02
them both. They sent from their mental00:15:04
institutions. They sent from their00:15:06
jails, prisons. They were drug dealers.00:15:09
They were drug kingpins. They sent00:15:11
everybody bad into the United States.00:15:14
But no longer. And we have now a border00:15:16
where nobody gets through. In addition,00:15:19
Venezuela00:15:21
unilaterally seized and sold American00:15:24
oil, American assets, and American00:15:27
platforms, costing us billions and00:15:30
billions of dollars.00:15:33
They did this a while ago, but we never00:15:34
had a president that did anything about00:15:36
it. They took all of our property was00:15:39
our property. We built it.00:15:42
And uh we never had a president that00:15:44
decided to do anything about it. and00:15:46
instead they fought wars that were00:15:48
10,000 mi away. We built Venezuela oil00:15:53
industry with American talent, drive,00:15:55
and skill. And the socialist regime00:15:59
stole it from us during those previous00:16:02
administrations. And they stole it00:16:04
through force. This constituted one of00:16:07
the largest thefts of American property00:16:09
in the history of our country.00:16:11
Considered the largest theft of property00:16:13
in the history of our country. Massive00:16:15
oil infrastructure was taken like we00:16:17
were babies and we didn't do anything00:16:19
about it. I would have done something00:16:21
about it. America will never allow00:16:24
foreign powers to rob our people or00:16:26
drive us back into00:16:29
and out of our own hemisphere. That's00:16:32
what they did.00:16:34
Furthermore, under the now deposed00:16:35
dictator Maduro, Venezuela was00:16:38
increasingly hosting foreign adversaries00:16:40
in our region and acquiring menacing00:16:43
offensive weapons that could threaten US00:16:45
interests and lives. And they used those00:16:47
weapons last night. They used those00:16:49
weapons last night potentially in league00:16:52
with the cartels operating along our00:16:54
border. All of these actions were in00:16:56
gross violation of the core principles00:16:59
of American foreign policy dating back00:17:02
more than two centuries00:17:04
and uh not anymore.00:17:08
All the way back it dated to the Monroe00:17:11
doctrines.00:17:13
And the Monroe doctrine is a a big deal00:17:16
but we've superseded it by a lot by a00:17:20
real lot. They now call it the Donro00:17:23
document. I don't know. It's uh Monroe00:17:28
Doctrine. We sort of forgot about it. It00:17:31
was very important, but we forgot about00:17:32
it. We don't forget about it anymore.00:17:34
Under our new national security00:17:36
strategy, American dominance in the00:17:38
Western Hemisphere will never be00:17:41
questioned again. Won't happen. So just00:17:44
in concluding for decades other00:17:46
administrations have neglected or even00:17:49
contributed to these growing security00:17:52
threats in the Western Hemisphere under00:17:55
the Trump administration. We are00:17:57
reasserting American power in a very00:17:59
powerful way in our home region and our00:18:04
home region is very different than it00:18:06
was just a short while ago. The future00:18:09
will be and we did this in my first00:18:10
term. We had great dominance in my first00:18:13
term and we have uh far greater00:18:16
dominance right now. Everyone's coming00:18:18
back to us. The future will be00:18:20
determined by the ability to protect00:18:24
commerce and territory and resources00:18:26
that are core to national security.00:18:29
These are core to n our national00:18:32
security. Just like tariffs are, they've00:18:35
made our country rich and they've made00:18:38
our national security strong, stronger00:18:41
than ever before.00:18:43
But these are the iron laws that have00:18:45
always determined global power.00:18:48
And uh we're going to keep it that way.00:18:50
We will secure our borders. We will stop00:18:53
the terrorists. We will crash the00:18:56
cartels. And we will defend our citizens00:18:59
against all threats, foreign and00:19:01
domestic. Other presidents may have00:19:03
lacked the courage or whatever to defend00:19:07
America, but I will never allow00:19:09
terrorists and criminals to operate with00:19:12
impunity against the United States. This00:19:15
extremely successful operation should00:19:17
serve as warning to anyone who would00:19:19
threaten American sovereignty or00:19:21
endanger American lives. Very00:19:24
importantly, the embargo on all00:19:26
Venezuelan oil remains in full effect.00:19:29
The American00:19:31
Armada remains poised in position and00:19:34
the United States retains all military00:19:36
options until United States demands have00:19:39
been fully met and fully satisfied.00:19:43
All political and military figures and00:19:45
Venezuela should understand what00:19:48
happened to Madura can happen to them00:19:50
and it will happen to them if they00:19:52
aren't just fair even to their people.00:19:57
The dictator and terrorist Maduro00:20:01
is finally gone. And Venezuela, people00:20:04
are free. They're free again. It's been00:20:07
a long time for them, but they're free.00:20:09
America is a safer nation this morning.00:20:13
It's a prouder nation this morning00:20:15
because it didn't allow this horrible00:20:18
person and this country that was doing00:20:22
very bad things to us. It didn't allow00:20:24
it to happen. and the western hemisphere00:20:27
is right now a much safer place to be.00:20:30
So I want to thank everybody for being00:20:32
here. Uh I want to thank General Raisen00:20:35
Kaine. He's fantastic man. I've worked00:20:38
with a lot of generals. I worked with00:20:40
some I didn't like. I worked with some I00:20:42
didn't respect. I worked with some they00:20:43
just weren't good. But this guy is00:20:46
fantastic. I watched last night one of00:20:49
the most precise00:20:51
uh attacks00:20:53
on sovereignty. him and it was an attack00:20:56
for justice and I'm very proud of him00:20:58
and I'm very proud of our secretary of00:21:00
war Pete Hexath who I'm going to ask to00:21:03
say a few words. Thank you very much.00:21:06
>> Mr. President, can you explain how the00:21:08
US will run Venezuela?00:21:10
>> Well, thank you, Mr. President. Um,00:21:12
finally, a commander-in-chief the world00:21:14
respects and the American people00:21:16
deserve. And as the president said,00:21:18
words can barely capture the bravery and00:21:21
the power and the precision of this00:21:23
historic operation. A massive joint00:21:25
military and law enforcement raid00:21:27
flawlessly executed by the greatest00:21:30
Americans our country has to offer.00:21:33
American warriors are second to none.00:21:35
The best in the world and the best of00:21:38
our country. What I what all of us00:21:40
witnessed last night was sheer guts and00:21:43
grit, gallantry and glory of the00:21:47
American warrior. I'm simply humbled by00:21:50
such man such men. And I tip my hat to00:21:53
our chairman Dan Raisen Kaine and all00:21:55
those Americans00:21:57
who stood watch last night. Our warriors00:21:59
are the elite of America. And again,00:22:02
President Trump has your back. No other00:22:06
country on planet Earth, and it's not00:22:07
even close, could pull this kind of00:22:10
operation off. And no other president00:22:12
has ever shown this kind of leadership,00:22:15
courage, and resolve. The most powerful00:22:18
combination the world has ever seen. As00:22:22
the president said, our adversaries00:22:24
remain on notice. America can project00:22:26
our will anywhere, anytime.00:22:30
The coordination, the stealth, the00:22:32
lethality, the precision, the very long00:22:35
arm of American justice, all on full00:22:37
display in the middle of the night.00:22:40
Nicholas Maduro had his chance just like00:22:44
Iran had their chance until they didn't00:22:47
and until he didn't. He effed around and00:22:51
he found out.00:22:53
President Trump is deadly serious about00:22:55
stopping the flow of gangs and violence00:22:57
to our country. deadly serious about00:23:00
stopping the flow of drugs and poison to00:23:03
our people. Deadly serious about getting00:23:06
back the oil that was stolen from us.00:23:09
And deadly serious about reestablishing00:23:11
American deterrence and dominance in the00:23:13
Western Hemisphere. This is about the00:23:16
safety, security, freedom, and00:23:19
prosperity of the American people. This00:23:23
is America first. This is peace through00:23:27
strength. and the United States War00:23:29
Department is proud to help deliver it.00:23:33
Welcome to 2026 and under President00:23:36
Trump, America is back. I'd like to00:23:41
welcome now our chairman, Chairman00:23:43
Raisen Kaine, to give a few more details00:23:45
about the operation. Mr. Chairman,00:23:49
>> thank you uh thank you, Mr. Secretary.00:23:51
Thank you, uh, Mr. President, and good00:23:53
morning. Last night on the order of the00:23:56
president of the United States and in00:23:58
support of a request from the Department00:24:00
of Justice, as the president said, the00:24:02
United States military conducted an00:24:04
apprehension mission in Caracus,00:24:06
Venezuela, to bring to justice two00:24:09
indicted persons, Nicholas and Cecilia00:24:11
Maduro. This operation known as00:24:14
Operation Absolute Resolve was discreet,00:24:17
precise, and conducted during the00:24:19
darkest hours of January 2nd and was in00:24:22
the culmination of months of planning00:24:24
and rehearsal. An operation that frankly00:24:27
only the United States military could00:24:29
undertake. What I'd like to do this00:24:31
morning is talk to you through some of00:24:33
the preparation and the details without00:24:36
compromising any of our tactics,00:24:39
techniques, and procedures. There is00:24:41
always a chance that we'll be tasked to00:24:43
do this type of mission again. Our inter00:24:46
agency work began months ago and built00:24:49
on decades of experience of integrating00:24:51
complex air, ground, space, and maritime00:24:55
operations. While the past two decades00:24:57
have honed the skills of our special00:24:59
operations forces, this particular00:25:02
mission required every component of our00:25:05
joint force with soldiers, sailors,00:25:08
airmen, marines, and guardians working00:25:11
in unison with our intelligence agency00:25:14
partners and law enforcement teammates00:25:16
in an unprecedented operation. We00:25:19
leveraged our unmatched intelligence00:25:21
capabilities and our years of experience00:25:24
in hunting terrorists. And we could not00:25:26
have done this mission without the00:25:28
incredible work by various intelligence00:25:31
agencies including the CIA, NSA, and00:25:34
NGA. We watched, we waited, we prepared,00:25:39
we remained patient and professional.00:25:43
This mission was meticulously planned,00:25:46
drawing lessons from decades of missions00:25:48
over the last many years. Decades of00:25:51
many missions over these last many00:25:53
years. This was an audacious operation00:25:56
that only the United States could do. It00:26:00
required the utmost of precision and00:26:03
integration within our joint force. And00:26:06
the word integration does not explain00:26:09
the sheer complexity of such a mission.00:26:12
An extraction so precise it involved00:26:16
more than 150 aircraft launching across00:26:19
the Western Hemisphere in close00:26:21
coordination. All coming together in00:26:25
time and place to layer effects for a00:26:28
single purpose to get an interdiction00:26:31
force into downtown Caracus while00:26:34
maintaining the element of tactical00:26:37
surprise.00:26:38
Failure of one component of this00:26:40
welloiled machine would have endangered00:26:43
the entire mission and failure is never00:26:46
an option for America's joint force.00:26:50
Those in the air over Caracus last night00:26:53
were willing to give their lives for00:26:55
those on the ground and in the00:26:57
helicopters.00:26:58
Let me talk a little bit about the00:27:00
preparation. After months of work by our00:27:03
intelligence teammates to find Maduro00:27:05
and understand how he moved, where he00:27:09
lived, where he traveled, what he ate,00:27:12
what he wore, what were his pets. In00:27:15
early December, our force was set00:27:18
pending a series of aligned events. key00:27:22
was choosing the right day to minimize00:27:25
the potential for civilian harm and00:27:28
maximize the element of surprise and00:27:31
minimize the harm to the indicted00:27:33
personnel. So, as the president said,00:27:35
they could be brought to justice. And as00:27:38
the president said earlier today,00:27:40
weather in Venezuela is always a factor00:27:43
this time of the year. And over the00:27:46
weeks through Christmas and New Year's,00:27:48
the men and women of the United States00:27:50
military sat ready, patiently waiting00:27:53
for the right triggers to be met and the00:27:56
president to order us into action. Last00:27:59
night, the weather broke just enough,00:28:01
clearing a path that only the most00:28:04
skilled aviators in the world could00:28:07
maneuver through. Ocean, mountain, low00:28:10
cloud, ceilings. But when tasked with a00:28:13
mission, this organization does not00:28:16
quit. At 10:46 p.m. Eastern time last00:28:21
night, the president ordered the United00:28:22
States military to move forward with00:28:25
this mission. He said to us, and we00:28:27
appreciate it, Mr. President, "Good luck00:28:29
and Godspeed." And those words were00:28:32
transmitted to the entire joint force.00:28:35
Over the course of the night, aircraft00:28:36
began launching from 20 different bases00:28:39
on land and sea across the Western00:28:42
Hemisphere. In total, more than 15000:28:45
aircraft, bombers, fighters,00:28:48
intelligence, reconnaissance,00:28:49
surveillance, rotary wing were in the00:28:51
air last night. Thousands and thousands00:28:54
of hours of experience were airborne.00:28:57
Our youngest crew member was 20 and our00:29:00
oldest crew member was 49. and they're00:29:02
simply no match for American military00:29:04
might. As the night began, the00:29:07
helicopters took off with the extraction00:29:09
force, which included law enforcement00:29:11
officers, and began their flight into00:29:13
Venezuela at 100 ft above the water. As00:29:17
they approached Venezuelan shores, the00:29:19
United States began layering different00:29:21
effects provided by Spacecom, CyberCom,00:29:24
and other members of the inter agency to00:29:26
create a pathway overhead. Those forces00:29:29
were protected from aircraft were00:29:32
protected by aircraft from the United00:29:33
States Marines, the United States Navy,00:29:36
the United States Air Force, and the Air00:29:38
National Guard. The force included00:29:41
F-22s, F-35s,00:29:44
F-18s, EA18s, E2s, B1 bombers, and other00:29:48
support aircraft, as well as numerous00:29:51
remotely piloted drones. As the force00:29:54
began to approach Caracus, the joint air00:29:57
component began dismantling and00:30:00
disabling the air defense systems in00:30:03
Venezuela, employing weapons to ensure00:30:06
the safe passage of the helicopters into00:30:09
the target area. The goal of our air00:30:11
component is, was, and always will be to00:30:17
protect the helicopters and the ground00:30:19
force and get them to the target and get00:30:22
them home. As the force crossed the last00:30:25
point of high terrain where they'd been00:30:27
hiding in the clutter, we assessed that00:30:30
we had maintained totally the element of00:30:33
surprise. As the helicopter force00:30:36
ingressed towards the objective at low00:30:38
level, we arrived at Maduro's compound00:30:41
at 10:01 a.m. Eastern Standard Time or00:30:45
20:01 a.m. Caracus local time. and the00:30:49
apprehension force descended into00:30:51
Maduro's compound and moved with speed,00:30:54
precision, and discipline towards their00:30:57
objective and isolated the area to00:30:59
ensure the safety and security of the00:31:02
ground force while apprehending the00:31:04
indicted persons.00:31:06
On arrival into the target area, the00:31:08
helicopters came under fire and they00:31:11
replied with that fire with overwhelming00:31:13
force in self-defense. One of our00:31:15
aircraft was hit but remained flyable.00:31:17
And as the president said earlier today,00:31:19
all of our aircraft came home and that00:31:22
aircraft remained flyable during the00:31:23
rest of the mission. As the operation00:31:26
unfolded at the compound, our air and00:31:28
ground intelligence teams provided00:31:31
realtime updates to the ground force,00:31:33
ensuring those forces could safely00:31:35
navigate the complex environment without00:31:37
unnecessary risk. The force remained00:31:41
protected by overhead tactical aviation.00:31:44
Maduro and his wife, both indicted, gave00:31:47
up and were taken into custody by the00:31:49
Department of Justice, assisted by our00:31:52
incredible US military with00:31:54
professionalism and precision, which00:31:57
with no loss of US life. After securing00:32:01
the indicted persons, the force began to00:32:03
prep for departure. Helicopters were00:32:06
called in to exfiltrate the extraction00:32:08
force while fighter aircraft and00:32:11
remotely piloted aircraft provided00:32:13
overhead coverage and suppressive fire.00:32:16
There were multiple self-defense00:32:18
engagements as the force began to00:32:21
withdraw out of Venezuela. The force00:32:24
successfully exfiltrated and returned to00:32:27
their afflat launch bases. And the force00:32:30
was over the water at 3:2900:32:33
a.m. Eastern Standard Time with indicted00:32:36
persons on board. And both Maduro and00:32:39
his wife were embarked aboard the USS00:32:42
Uima.00:32:44
In closing, what we've witnessed today00:32:46
is a powerful demonstration of America's00:32:49
joint force. We think, we develop, we00:32:54
train, we rehearse, we debrief, we00:32:58
rehearse again and again. Not to get it00:33:01
right, but to ensure that we cannot get00:33:05
it wrong. Our jobs are to integrate00:33:08
combat power so when the order comes, we00:33:12
can deliver overwhelming force at the00:33:15
time and the place of our choosing00:33:18
against any foe anywhere in the world. I00:33:22
am immensely proud today of our joint00:33:25
force and filled with gratitude to00:33:28
represent them here today. There is00:33:30
simply no mission too difficult for00:33:33
these incredible professionals and the00:33:36
families that stand by them and support00:33:38
them. As we stand here this morning, our00:33:41
forces remain in the region at a high00:33:44
state of readiness, pro prepared to00:33:47
project power, defend themselves and our00:33:50
interests in the region. This operation00:33:54
is a testament to the dedication and00:33:57
unwavering commitment to justice and our00:33:59
resolve to hold accountable those who00:34:02
threaten peace and stability. In00:34:05
closing, I want to express my heartfelt00:34:08
gratitude to the brave men and women who00:34:11
executed this mission. Their courage and00:34:14
tireless commitment to our nation are00:34:16
what makes us strong. Thank you, Mr.00:34:18
Secretary, and thank you, Mr. President.00:34:24
Well, I don't have much to add to what00:34:25
you've heard now other than the00:34:26
following points. Nicholas Maduro was00:34:28
indicted in 2020 in the United States.00:34:31
He is not the legitimate president of00:34:33
Venezuela. That's not just us saying it.00:34:35
The first Trump administration, the00:34:37
Biden administration, the second Trump00:34:38
administration, none of those three00:34:40
recognized him. He's not recognized by00:34:42
the European Union and multiple00:34:43
countries around the world. He is a00:34:45
fugitive of American justice with a $5000:34:47
million reward. Uh which I guess we save00:34:49
$50 million and uh00:34:52
>> make sure >> Yeah, exactly. But00:34:54
>> don't let anybody claim it.00:34:56
>> Nobody deserves it but us.00:34:58
>> But I want to be clear about one thing.00:35:00
Nicholas Maduro had multiple00:35:01
opportunities to avoid this. He was00:35:03
provided multiple very very very00:35:06
generous offers and chose instead to act00:35:08
like a wild man. Chose instead to play00:35:10
around and the result is what we saw00:35:12
tonight. Uh the other message here is00:35:14
the following. You have a guy like many00:35:16
people around the world, they like to00:35:17
play games. You have a guy who decides00:35:19
he's going to invite Iran into his00:35:21
country, is going to, you know, do the00:35:23
confiscation of American oil companies,00:35:25
is going to flood our country with gang00:35:26
members, is is going to take Americans00:35:29
prisoner and try to hold them for00:35:31
hostage and trade them like he was able00:35:32
to do with the Biden administration.00:35:34
Basically likes to play games all this00:35:36
time and thinks nothing's going to00:35:37
happen. And I hope what people now00:35:39
understand is we have a president. The00:35:41
47th president of the United States is00:35:42
not a game player. When he tells you00:35:45
that he's going to do something, when00:35:46
he's tells you he's going to address a00:35:47
problem, he means it. He actions it. I I00:35:51
can tell you, I've watched this process00:35:52
now for 14 15 years, been around it.00:35:54
Everybody talks, I'm going to do this.00:35:55
I'm going to do that. When I get there,00:35:56
we're going to do this. We're going to00:35:57
take This is a president of action.00:35:59
Like, I don't understand yet how they00:36:01
haven't figured this out. And now, if00:36:03
you don't know, now you know, cuz this00:36:05
is the way it's going to play out. And I00:36:06
think people need to understand that00:36:08
this is not a president that just talks00:36:09
and does letters and press conferences00:36:11
and you know if he says he's serious00:36:13
about something he means it. And and00:36:15
this is something that was a direct00:36:16
threat to the national interest of the00:36:18
United States. And the president00:36:19
addressed it. There's a president of00:36:21
peace. By the way, I told you what I00:36:22
just said earlier. This guy had multiple00:36:24
opportunities to find his way somewhere00:36:26
else and figure out another. He could00:36:27
have been living somewhere else right00:36:29
now, very happy, but instead he wanted00:36:30
to play big boy. And so now, you know,00:36:32
he's got other sets of problems on his00:36:34
hands. And uh but I think the the00:36:36
message here should be for the world.00:36:38
Look, the president doesn't go out00:36:39
looking for people to pick fights with.00:36:41
He's not generally wants to get along00:36:42
with everybody. We'll talk and meet with00:36:45
anybody, but don't play games. Don't00:36:47
play games with this president's in00:36:49
office because it's not going to turn00:36:50
out well. And so I I hope that uh you00:36:53
know um you know, I guess uh that lesson00:36:56
was learned last night and um and we00:36:58
hope it'll be instructive moving00:36:59
forward.00:37:00
>> Is that a message for Cuba? Mr.00:37:01
President,00:37:02
>> Mr. President, Mr. President,00:37:03
>> Mr. president running the country. Mr.00:37:05
President, Mr. President, you said that00:37:08
the US is going to run Venezuela. So,00:37:10
who's in power right now?00:37:11
>> Well, we're going to be running it with00:37:13
a group and we're going to make sure00:37:14
it's run properly. We're going to00:37:16
rebuild the oil infrastructure, which00:37:18
will cost billions of dollars. It'll be00:37:20
paid for by the oil companies directly.00:37:23
Uh they will uh be reimbursed for what00:37:26
they're doing, but that's going to be00:37:28
paid. And we're going to get the oil00:37:30
flowing the way it should be. As you00:37:31
know, it was just a minor flow. is00:37:33
actually a minor flow for what they00:37:34
have, but we're going to run it properly00:37:36
and we're going to make sure the people00:37:38
of Venezuela are taken care of. We're00:37:40
going to make sure the people that were00:37:41
forced out of Venezuela by this thug uh00:37:44
are also taken care of.00:37:47
>> Mr. President, Mr. President, Mr.00:37:49
>> President, does the US running the00:37:51
country mean that US troops will be on00:37:53
the ground? How will that work?00:37:54
>> Well, you know, they always say boots on00:37:56
the ground. Oh, so we're not afraid of00:37:58
boots on the ground if we have to have.00:37:59
We had boots on the ground last night at00:38:02
a very high level. Actually, we're not00:38:04
afraid of it. We We don't mind saying00:38:06
it, but we're going to make sure that00:38:08
that country is run properly. We're not00:38:10
doing this in vain. This is not This is00:38:12
a very dangerous attack. This is an00:38:14
attack that could have gone very very00:38:16
badly. Could have gone very badly. We00:38:18
could have lost a lot of people last00:38:19
night. We could have lost a lot of uh00:38:22
dignity. We could have lost a lot of00:38:24
equipment. The equipment is less00:38:25
important, but uh we could have lost a00:38:28
lot. and we're going to make sure that00:38:30
this is proper. We're there now. We're00:38:33
ready to go again if we have to. We're00:38:35
going to run the c country right. It's00:38:37
going to be run very uh judiciously,00:38:40
very fairly. It's going to make a lot of00:38:42
money. We're going to give money to the00:38:44
people. We're going to reimburse uh00:38:46
people that were taken advantage of.00:38:49
We're going to take care of everybody.00:38:51
It's very important. We couldn't let00:38:52
them get away with it. You know, they00:38:54
stole our oil. We we built that whole00:38:57
industry there and they just took it00:39:00
over like we were nothing and we had a00:39:02
president that decided not to do00:39:03
anything about it. So uh we did00:39:06
something about it. We're late but we00:39:08
did something about it. Yeah, please.00:39:10
>> Can you explain the exact mechanism by00:39:12
which you're going to run the country?00:39:13
Are you going to designate a US official00:39:15
to coordinate?00:39:16
>> It's all being it's all being done right00:39:17
now. We're designating people. We're00:39:19
talking to people. We're designating uh00:39:21
various people and we're going to let00:39:22
you know who those people are.00:39:25
the group you mentioned that would run00:39:26
Venezuela.00:39:27
>> Well, it's largely going to be for a00:39:29
period of time, the people that are00:39:31
standing right behind me, we're going to00:39:33
be running it. We're going to be00:39:34
bringing it back. It's a it's a dead,00:39:36
you know, I talk about a dead country. A00:39:38
year and a half ago, we were a dead00:39:40
country. Now, we're the hottest country00:39:42
anywhere in the world. We're a country00:39:44
doing better than any country anywhere00:39:46
in the world. And it required00:39:49
leadership. Venezuela has a lot of bad00:39:52
people in there, a lot of bad people00:39:54
that shouldn't be leading. We're not00:39:55
going to take a chance at one of those00:39:57
people take over for Maduro. So, uh, you00:40:00
can look at and and others. We have00:40:02
fantastic people, including people in00:40:04
the military. So, we're going to have a00:40:06
group of people running it until such00:40:08
time as it can be put back on track.00:40:11
make a lot of money for the people and00:40:13
give people a great way of life and also00:40:15
reimbursement for people in our country00:40:18
that were forced out of Venezuela00:40:22
would be >> you said earlier today that you weren't00:40:24
going to back Machado to come back and00:40:26
be the opposition later in your Fox and00:40:27
Friends interview and then you also00:40:29
mentioned the vice president of00:40:30
Venezuela. Are you going to work with00:40:31
vice president of Venezuela or how do00:40:33
you foresee the relationship? I00:40:34
understand she was just sworn in, but00:40:37
she was, as you know, picked by Maduro.00:40:39
So, Marco is working on that directly.00:40:42
Just had a conversation with her and00:40:44
she's essentially willing to do what we00:40:47
think is necessary to make Venezuela00:40:50
great again. Very simple.00:40:52
>> Mr. President, uh so Colombian President00:40:54
Gustavo Petro uh you know, a couple00:40:56
weeks ago he said he's got to watch his00:40:57
ass. Um and today he said he's not00:41:00
concerned about anything happening to00:41:01
him in the aftermath of this operation.00:41:03
So, uh, just what your message is.00:41:05
>> He has cocaine mills. He has, uh,00:41:07
factories where he makes cocaine. And,00:41:10
yeah, I think I stick by my first00:41:12
statement. He's making cocaine. They're00:41:14
sending it into the United States. So,00:41:16
he does have to watch his ass.00:41:20
>> Did you notify any members of Congress00:41:22
in advance? >> Marco, do you want to talk about that00:41:24
because you were involved in00:41:25
>> Sure. We called members of Congress00:41:26
immediately after. This was not the kind00:41:28
of mission that you can do congressional00:41:29
notification on. It was a a00:41:31
trigger-based mission in which00:41:32
conditions had to be met night after00:41:34
night. We watched and monitor that for a00:41:35
number of days. So, it's just simply not00:41:37
the kind of mission you can call people00:41:38
and say, "Hey, we may do this at some00:41:40
point in the next 15 days." But it's00:41:42
largely a law enforcement function.00:41:43
Remember, at the end of the day, at at00:41:45
its core, this was an arrest of two00:41:47
indicted fugitives of American justice00:41:50
and the Department of War supported the00:41:51
Department of Justice in that job. Now,00:41:53
there are broader policy implications00:41:54
here, but it's just not the kind of00:41:56
mission that you can pre-notify because00:41:58
it endangers the mission.00:42:01
If I could add one thing to that,00:42:04
>> Congress has a tendency to leak. This00:42:06
would not be good. If they leaked,00:42:09
General, I think it would have been00:42:10
maybe a very different result. But I I00:42:13
have to say they knew we were coming at00:42:15
some point. You know, a lot of ships out00:42:16
there. They sort of knew we were coming.00:42:18
We weren't. But but Congress Congress00:42:21
will leak and we don't want leakers. Mr.00:42:24
>> President, President, you were one of00:42:25
the only people to watch this all play00:42:27
out live. What was Maduro doing uh when00:42:30
the US forces entered what I assume00:42:32
would be his home? And also, was there00:42:33
any point where the US was considering00:42:35
if Maduro pushed back or resisted00:42:38
killing Maduro?00:42:39
>> We could have happened. It could have00:42:41
happened. He was trying to get into a00:42:42
safe place. You know, the safe place is00:42:44
all steel and he wasn't able to make it00:42:47
to the door because our guys were so00:42:50
fast. They went through the opposition00:42:52
so fast and there was a lot of00:42:53
opposition. You know, people were00:42:55
wondering, did we get them by surprise?00:42:57
sort of surprised, but they were waiting00:42:59
for something. There was a lot of00:43:00
opposition. There was a lot of gunfire.00:43:03
You saw some of it today. Uh, but he was00:43:06
trying to get to a safe place, which00:43:08
wasn't safe because we would have had00:43:10
the door blown up in about 47, I think00:43:13
47 seconds they say on average,00:43:16
regardless of how thick the steel was.00:43:18
It was a very thick door. It's a very00:43:20
heavy door, but he was unable to get to00:43:22
that door. He made it to the door. He00:43:24
was unable to close it. So,00:43:28
go ahead. Where is Maduro going to be in00:43:30
the time being? Right now, do you know00:43:32
his exact >> Well, eventually, ultimately in the near00:43:34
future, he's going to be brought to New00:43:36
York. >> And where is he going to be held? Where00:43:37
is he going to be held in New York? Do00:43:39
you know? >> That's going to be up to the officials00:43:40
that do these things.00:43:42
>> Mr. President, Mr. President, Mr.00:43:43
President, the US has something of a00:43:45
mixed track record of ousting dictators00:43:48
without necessarily a plan for what00:43:49
comes afterwards. Did that weigh on your00:43:51
decision? >> That's why we had different presidents,00:43:53
but with me, that's not true. with me.00:43:55
We've had a perfect track record of00:43:57
winning. We win a lot. And we win. If00:44:00
you look at Solomoni, you look at00:44:02
Albaghdaddy, you look at the Midnight00:44:05
Hammer. Midnight Hammer was incredible.00:44:08
Right now, you you wouldn't have peace00:44:10
in the Middle East. We if essentially00:44:12
peace in the Middle East because of00:44:13
that. If you didn't if we weren't00:44:15
successful with Midnight Hammer, you00:44:17
wouldn't have peace in the Middle East.00:44:18
So, uh, with me, you've had a lot of a00:44:22
lot of victory. You've had only00:44:23
victories. You've had no losses. Yeah.00:44:24
Mr.00:44:25
>> President, can you uh how long do you00:44:27
expect the US to run Venezuela and how00:44:29
soon do you want the Venezuelan people00:44:31
to hold election?00:44:32
>> So, I'd like to do it quickly, but it00:44:34
takes a period of time. You know, we're00:44:35
rebuilding. We have to rebuild their00:44:37
whole infrastructure. The infrastructure00:44:39
is rotted. It's actually very dangerous.00:44:41
It's a, you know, blowup territory. Oil00:44:43
is very dangerous. It's a very dangerous00:44:46
thing to take out of the ground. Uh can00:44:48
kill a lot of people. It has killed a00:44:50
lot of people doing just that. Uh the00:44:53
infrastructure is old. It's rotted. Much00:44:56
of it is stuff that we put there 2500:44:57
years ago and we're going to re be00:45:00
replacing it and we're going to take a00:45:02
lot of money out so that we can take00:45:04
care of the country. Yeah.00:45:06
>> Are you saying that Secretary Rubio and00:45:09
>> Mr. President, China, Russia, and Iran00:45:11
have interests in Venezuela? How does00:45:13
this operation affect your relationships00:45:15
with them when it comes to the oil and00:45:17
drug >> and Russia? Uh well, Russia, when we get00:45:21
things straightened out, but in terms of00:45:24
other countries that want oil, we're in00:45:26
the oil business. We're going to sell it00:45:28
to them. We're not going to say we're00:45:29
not going to go there. In other words,00:45:30
we'll be selling oil uh probably in much00:45:33
larger doses because they couldn't00:45:35
produce very much because their00:45:36
infrastructure was so bad. So, we'll be00:45:38
selling large amounts of oil to other00:45:40
countries, many of whom are using it00:45:43
now, but I would say many more will00:45:45
come.00:45:46
Are you saying Mr. President are you00:45:48
saying that Mr. President are you saying00:45:50
that you Mr. President, thank you. What00:45:53
is your message to the people of00:45:54
Venezuela today? Of course, the civilian00:45:57
population specifically, they have a lot00:45:59
of questions. What is your message to00:46:00
the people of Venezuela?00:46:01
>> You're going to have peace, justice.00:46:03
You're going to have some of the riches00:46:06
that you should have had for a long00:46:08
period of time. It was stolen from you.00:46:10
But you're going to have peace and00:46:11
you're going to have safety. You're00:46:12
going to have justice. You're going to00:46:13
have a country. You're going to have a00:46:14
real country. You're going to have00:46:15
potentially a great country. You know,00:46:17
if you go back 20 years, maybe even a00:46:19
little longer ago, that was a great00:46:20
country. and they destroyed it. Remember00:46:23
I said that if we lose this election,00:46:26
the United States will be Venezuela on00:46:29
steroids. That's what would have00:46:31
happened had we lost the election, the00:46:34
2024 election. We suffered so badly.00:46:36
When you look at the border from 2020,00:46:39
what what they did, what Joe Biden00:46:41
administration did to our country should00:46:44
never be forgotten. But if we had to go00:46:46
through another year of that, we00:46:47
wouldn't have we would be exactly where00:46:49
Venezuela was. In terms I I used to say00:46:53
if they win we're going to be Venezuela00:46:55
on steroids and that's what would have00:46:56
happened.00:46:58
>> President, thank you. Are you saying00:46:59
that Secretary Hegsth and Rubio are00:47:01
going to be running Venezuela and will00:47:03
you be sending in US military troops to00:47:05
provide00:47:06
>> that's working with the people of00:47:07
Venezuela to make sure that we have00:47:09
Venezuela right? Because for us to just00:47:11
leave who's going to take over? I mean00:47:13
there is nobody to take over. You have a00:47:16
vice president who's been appointed by00:47:18
Maduro and right now she's the vice00:47:21
president and she's I guess the00:47:22
president. She was sworn as president00:47:24
just a little while ago. She had a long00:47:26
conversation with Marco and she said00:47:29
we'll do whatever you need. Uh she I00:47:32
think she was quite gracious. But she00:47:35
really doesn't have a choice. We're00:47:37
going to have this done right. We're not00:47:38
going to just do this with Madura then00:47:40
leave like everybody else. Leave and00:47:42
say, you know, let it go to hell. If we00:47:44
just left, it has zero chance of ever00:47:47
coming back. We'll run it properly.00:47:49
We'll run it professionally. We'll have00:47:51
the greatest oil companies in the world00:47:52
go in and invest billions and billions00:47:54
of dollars and take out money, use that00:47:57
money in Venezuela.00:47:59
And the biggest beneficiary are going to00:48:01
be the people of Venezuela. And also, I00:48:03
can't stress this strongly enough, the00:48:06
people that got thrown out of Venezuela00:48:08
that are now in the United States. And00:48:10
frankly, some want to stay and some00:48:11
probably want to go back. Yeah.00:48:14
What's being done to protect Americans00:48:16
in the country? And were any of the00:48:18
detained Americans?00:48:19
>> Well, right now they're very protected00:48:20
because nobody's going to mess with us.00:48:22
They're very protected. The people of00:48:24
and we let them know that. You better00:48:26
not touch one of them.00:48:28
>> Are you concerned that bad elements of00:48:30
the Maduro regime will remain in place?00:48:33
>> Well, we know who they are. We're on00:48:35
them. And uh they're acting much00:48:38
differently now than they would have00:48:39
acted two days ago. Okay. Wait behind00:48:41
you, please.00:48:42
>> Mr. President, why is running a country00:48:43
in South America America first?00:48:46
>> Well, I think it is because we want to00:48:48
surround oursel with good neighbors. We00:48:50
want to surround oursel with stability.00:48:53
Uh we want to surround oursel with00:48:55
energy. We have tremendous energy in00:48:57
that country. It's very important that00:48:58
we protect it. We need that for00:49:00
ourselves. We need that for the world.00:49:02
And we want to make sure we can protect00:49:03
it. Cuba.00:49:05
>> Yes, sir. Please go ahead.00:49:06
>> Yeah. Is there a message here for Cuba00:49:08
and Danel?00:49:09
>> Well, Cuba is an interesting case. Cuba00:49:11
is, you know, uh, not doing very well00:49:13
right now. It, that system has not been00:49:15
a very good one for Cuba. The people00:49:17
there have suffered for many, many00:49:18
years. And I think Cuba is going to be00:49:22
something we'll end up talking about00:49:23
because Cuba is a failing nation right00:49:26
now. Very badly failing nation. And we00:49:28
want to help the people of It's very00:49:29
similar in the sense that we want to00:49:31
help the people in Cuba, but we want to00:49:33
also help the people that were forced00:49:35
out of Cuba and living in this country.00:49:37
Do you want to say something about that,00:49:38
Marco, please? Well, I mean, I just gave00:49:41
you a statement a few minutes ago about00:49:43
uh you know, when the president speaks,00:49:44
you should take him seriously. Suffice00:49:46
it to say, you know, Cuba is a disaster.00:49:48
It's it's run by incompetent00:49:51
scenile men and then and in some cases00:49:54
not seen now, but incompetent00:49:55
nonetheless. It has no economy. It's in00:49:57
total collapse. And by the way, you00:49:58
know, they were crit, you know, all of00:50:00
the guards that help protect Maduro,00:50:02
this is well known. Their whole spy00:50:04
agency, all that were full of Cubans. I00:50:05
mean, they basically, it's amazing. this00:50:07
poor c island took over Venezuela in00:50:10
some cases. One of the biggest problems00:50:11
that Venezuelans have is they have to00:50:13
declare independence from Cuba. They00:50:14
tried to basically colonize it from a00:50:15
security standpoint. So yeah, look, if I00:50:18
lived in Havana and I was in the00:50:19
government, I'd be concerned at least a00:50:20
little bit off the oil flow to Cuba from00:50:22
Venezuela.00:50:24
>> Well, the president already announced a00:50:25
week ago that anything that's00:50:26
sanctioned, it's sanctioned oil, it it's00:50:29
not going to be allowed to get there. So00:50:30
that that's that's an pre-existing00:50:32
>> Mr. President00:50:34
Trump,00:50:35
>> the answer is the answer is yes.00:50:37
>> Mr. President, >> yes.00:50:38
>> Is the US aware of the location of00:50:40
opposition leader Machado? And have you00:50:42
been in contact with her?00:50:43
>> No, we haven't. No, we haven't.00:50:45
>> Mr. President,00:50:49
>> Mr. President, on on Monday,00:50:51
>> I think it would be very tough for her00:50:52
to be the leader. She doesn't have the00:50:54
support within or the respect within the00:50:56
country. She's a very nice woman, but00:50:58
she doesn't have the respect.00:50:59
>> Mr. Is it possible that the US ends up00:51:01
administrating Venezuela for years, you00:51:03
know, in a situ?00:51:04
>> Well, you know, it won't cost us00:51:06
anything because the uh money coming out00:51:08
of the ground is very substantial. So,00:51:10
it's not going to cost us anything. We00:51:12
will00:51:13
>> Well, we want safety there. We want to00:51:15
be surrounded by countries that aren't00:51:17
housing all of our enemies all over the00:51:19
world. That's what was happening. And00:51:21
you don't want to have that. Uh but00:51:23
we're going to be rebuilding and and00:51:26
we're we're not spending money. The oil00:51:29
companies are going to go in. They're00:51:30
going to spend money. They're going to00:51:31
We're going to take back the oil that00:51:33
frankly we should have taken back a long00:51:34
time ago. A lot of money is coming out00:51:37
of the ground. We're going to get00:51:38
reimbursed for all of that. We're going00:51:39
to get reimbured for everything that we00:51:41
spend. So, it's going to be uh it's00:51:44
going to be a very important it's going00:51:46
to be a very important this is a very00:51:48
big evening that took place last night.00:51:50
We have to be surrounded by safe, secure00:51:54
countries and we also have to have00:51:56
energy. very important. We have to have00:51:58
energy that's real energy, not where00:52:00
they're getting 4% and 5% of the energy00:52:03
out of the ground. You take a look, it00:52:05
was such a disaster. So, what's going to00:52:07
happen with Venezuela, I think, over the00:52:09
next period of a year is going to be a00:52:12
great thing and the people of Venezuela00:52:14
will be the biggest beneficiaries. Mr.00:52:15
>> President,00:52:19
US military.00:52:20
>> Mr. President, thank you. What did you00:52:21
last speak to Maduro about when you00:52:24
spoke? and is the00:52:25
>> well I don't want to get into the00:52:26
conversations but I did have00:52:27
conversations with him and I said uh00:52:31
>> you got to surrender00:52:34
>> and I actually thought he was pretty00:52:36
close to doing so but now he wished he00:52:38
did. Yeah.00:52:39
>> Mr. President, can you explain you said00:52:41
that Maduro is responsible for drug00:52:43
trafficking. You recently pardoned the00:52:45
former president of Honduras who was00:52:47
convicted of many drug trafficking. Can00:52:49
you explain how these two situations are00:52:51
and would you ever pardon Maduro? I00:52:53
endorsed, as you know, the winning00:52:54
president, the man who won in Honduras.00:52:56
I endorsed the man who won in Chile. I00:53:00
endorsed the man who won in Argentina.00:53:02
And we are doing very well with that00:53:04
whole group. What the man that I00:53:06
pardoned was, if you could equate it to00:53:09
us, he was treated like the Biden00:53:11
administration treated a man named00:53:13
Trump. That didn't work out too well for00:53:15
them. This was a man who was persecuted00:53:18
very unfairly. He was the head of the00:53:20
country. he was persecuted very unfairly00:53:22
and there are a number of them and we00:53:25
felt that it was a very unfair situation00:53:27
that happened to him. Uh he's also a00:53:29
party member of the man who won. So00:53:31
obviously the people liked what I did00:53:34
and one of the reasons that was done is00:53:36
because of the fact that the party in00:53:38
power felt very strongly that that man00:53:41
was treated very badly. I studied it00:53:43
very quickly and then I studied it in00:53:45
great detail. I went to a lot of the00:53:47
people standing behind me and they felt00:53:49
that that man was persecuted and treated00:53:51
very badly. That's why I gave him a00:53:53
pardon.00:53:55
>> You referenced boots on the ground00:53:57
earlier. Can you just sort of button00:53:58
this up? Do you envision the US military00:54:01
having a presence in Venezuela as the US00:54:03
runs that00:54:04
>> Well, no, we're going to have a presence00:54:05
in Venezuela as it pertains to oil00:54:08
because we have to have we we're sending00:54:09
our expertise in. Uh, so you may need00:54:13
something, not very much, but no, we're00:54:15
going to be taking out a tremendous00:54:17
amount of wealth out of the ground. And00:54:19
that wealth is going to the people of00:54:20
Venezuela and people from outside of00:54:23
Venezuela that used to be in Venezuela.00:54:25
And it goes also to the United States of00:54:28
America in the form of reimbursement for00:54:30
the damages caused us by that country.00:54:33
So I want to thank you all very much.00:54:34
Thank you. Do you have one? Yes, please.00:54:37
>> You were so nice before. I'm going to00:54:38
give you the final question. Go ahead,00:54:40
Mr. Unless it's a bad question, in which00:54:42
case I'll go one more word. It's about00:54:44
>> It's about Putin if you want.00:54:45
>> About Putin. Well, that's always nice00:54:47
about Putin.00:54:48
>> You had a phone call with him on Monday.00:54:50
Did he talk at all about Maduro? Did00:54:52
y'all talk about this?00:54:53
>> No, we didn't. We never spoke about00:54:54
Maduro.00:54:55
>> Are you mad at him right now? I mean,00:54:56
there's this00:54:57
>> I'm not thrilled with Putin. I'm not00:54:59
thrilled with Putin. He's killing too00:55:01
many people.00:55:03
>> Was that entire? >> I thought that would be So, I settled00:55:06
eight and one quarter war. You know what00:55:08
the one quarter was? Thailand and00:55:11
Cambodia. I did it again. They were they00:55:14
broke out and I did it in about 5 hours00:55:18
and I settled it. I'm giving myself one00:55:20
quarter. So I'm up to now eight and one00:55:22
quarter. In other words, I settled the00:55:24
war, but then they broke out. They had a00:55:26
pretty bad breakout over the last four00:55:28
days. I got them to go back to peace. So00:55:31
I only give one quarter. I thought the00:55:33
easiest one would be one of the easier00:55:35
ones would be Russia, Ukraine. It's not.00:55:39
And uh they both have done some pretty00:55:42
bad things. And look, that's Biden's00:55:45
war. That's not my war. But I want to00:55:47
stop the lives. Did you see where last00:55:49
month 30,000 this last it was 27 27,00000:55:55
the month before 30,00000:55:58
mostly soldiers were killed this last00:56:01
month. 30,000. I want to stop that. You00:56:04
know, I got NATO to pay 5% instead of00:56:08
the 2% that they weren't paying. They00:56:10
weren't paying two. Now they pay five.00:56:13
And we send them a lot of munitions. We00:56:15
send them a lot of things, missiles and00:56:17
various other things. A lot. And they00:56:19
pay. The United States is not losing00:56:21
money. We're probably making money on00:56:23
that. It's the last thing I care about.00:56:25
I just want to stop all those people.00:56:27
We're losing 25 30,000 human beings.00:56:30
They come from two places that are very00:56:32
far away. But if I can stop because it's00:56:36
something I've been pretty good at doing00:56:38
deals. I guess it's all a deal. Life is00:56:41
a big deal. But if I can stop that war00:56:44
and stop 30,000 young people in addition00:56:46
to the fact that people are being killed00:56:49
in Kiev, people are being killed in00:56:50
other cities throughout, you know, a00:56:52
much smaller number, but they're being00:56:54
killed, viciously killed. So I'm not00:56:56
happy about it. I thought that would be00:56:58
something that would get solved. We have00:57:00
Mr. Whit here. I think that we're making00:57:03
progress, but that's a war that should00:57:05
have never happened. If I were00:57:06
president, it would have never happened.00:57:08
Putin says it. Everybody says it. If I00:57:11
were president, that would have never00:57:13
happened. But I inherited that war. That00:57:15
was Joe Biden. Zalinsky and Putin. I00:57:19
came into the situation and it's a mess.00:57:22
And I will say this, I watched an00:57:24
operation last night that was so00:57:26
precise, that was so brilliant. I mean,00:57:29
it was incredible. Uh, if we had our00:57:32
people like this general and our people00:57:34
involved, that war, that war would not00:57:37
have gone on very long. That I can tell00:57:39
you00:57:41
>> that war, to use an old term, that war00:57:43
has become a bloodbath00:57:46
and we want it to get stopped. Thank you00:57:48
very much.Description:
Watch live as US President Donald Trump holds a news conference after Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was captured and flown out of the country along with his wife, Cilia Flores Trump said the US carried out a "large-scale strike" against Venezuela in the early hours of this morning. A US official told Reuters news agency Maduro was captured by elite US special forces. Read more on the Sky News website: https://news.sky.com/story/venezuela-latest-explosions-heard-in-capital-of-caracas-13489831 SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel for more videos: https://www.youtube.com/skynews Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/skynews Like us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/unsupportedbrowser Follow us on Instagram: https://www.facebook.com/unsupportedbrowser Follow us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@skynews For more content go to https://news.sky.com/ and download our apps: Apple https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/sky-news-breaking-uk-world/id316391924 Android https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.bskyb.skynews.android&hl=en_GB Sky News Daily podcast is available for free here: https://podfollow.com/skynewsdaily/ To enquire about licensing Sky News content, you can find more information here: https://news.sky.com/info/library-sales
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