Donald Trump floated making Venezuela the 51st US state after a deadly operation to detain Nicolás Maduro, while talks with energy firms intensify.
The president has repeatedly threatened to annex several sovereign nations and territories or use military force to control them, including Canada, Greenland, Panama and Cuba.. But his latest comments follow a lethal military operation to arrest Venezuelan leader -Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, while working alongside oil companies to seize oil infrastructure.. Mr Trump is now “seriously considering a move to make Venezuela the 51st state,” according to Fox News correspondent John Roberts,
who spoke to the president yesterday.. Following Maduro’s capture in January, White House officials have shuttled back and forth to Caracas to broker deals with US energy and mining companies while trying to forge closer ties to interim president Delcy Rodriguez and her administration – talks that have accelerated as the US war with Iran threatens global energy supplies.. They were miserable.. Now they’re happy.. It’s being well run Mr Trump – who cannot legally
declare Venezuela the 51st state without congressional approval or Venezuela’s consent – has not ruled out military intervention when it comes to his imperial ambitions to occupy Greenland.. When it comes to Venezuela, the US has already built up one of the largest naval fleets in the Caribbean in decades and continues a deadly streak of bombings against alleged drug-trafficking boats in the region.. Mr Trump told reporters at the White House Monday that US
operations in Venezuela were “military genius”.. -“Venezuela is a very happy country right now,” he also told Full Measure’s Sharyl Attkisson in an interview that aired May 10.. “They were miserable.. Now they’re happy.. It’s being well run,” he said.. “The oil that’s coming out is enormous, the biggest in many years.. And the big oil companies are going in with the biggest, most beautiful rigs you’ve ever seen.” Ms Rodriguez has not announced a
timeline for democratic elections.. In remarks after announcing Maduro’s capture, Mr Trump said an interim group led by top administration officials will “run” the country for “a period of time” until the US determines a “peaceful and just transition” can take place.. The president’s threats have alarmed critics who fear the US could blow up international accords and open the door for authoritarian regimes to make similar moves.. “The Venezuelan people deserve a democratic transition,
and for those responsible for serious human rights violations to be held -accountable before the law,” a coalition of over 40 human rights groups in Latin America wrote in a joint statement earlier this year.. “However, this cannot justify the breakdown of international order or legitimise violent and unilateral means that impose the logic of the strongest,” they said.
Venezuela 51st state, Nicolás Maduro capture, Delcy Rodriguez interim, US military operation, energy and mining deals, Caribbean naval fleet, human rights coalition