The Russian Foreign Ministry on January 3 declared condemnation of the US's "armed actions against Venezuela", calling any reason given to justify such actions unacceptable.
We reaffirm our solidarity with the Venezuelan people and our support for the Venezuelan leadership's course of action to protect national interests and the sovereignty of the country" - a statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry said, emphasizing that the Latin American region must "maintain being a peaceful region".
In the current situation, the most important thing is to prevent further escalation and focus on finding solutions to the situation through dialogue" - the statement said. "Venezuela must be guaranteed the right to decide its own destiny without any destructive intervention, let alone military intervention, from outside.
The Russian Foreign Ministry added that the Russian Embassy in the capital Caracas is still operating normally. Currently, there is no information about Russian citizens being affected.
On January 3, US President Donald Trump announced that the US had launched a large-scale attack on Venezuela.
In a post on the social network Truth Social, Mr. Trump said that President Nicolas Maduro and his wife had been arrested and taken out of Venezuela after the US campaign.
The Trump administration has for many years accused President Maduro of crime and sought to prosecute him through the US legal system.
In 2020, during Mr. Trump's first term, President Maduro was charged in the South New York District with "drug terrorism", conspiracy to import cocaine and related charges.
The Trump administration has offered a reward of 15 million USD for the arrest of the Venezuelan leader. This reward was increased to 25 million USD in the last days of President Joe Biden's administration in early January 2025, and increased to 50 million USD in August 2025 after Mr. Trump took office for a second term and appointed Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization. The US administration accuses Mr. Maduro of being the leader of this group.
Mr. Trump said in a social media post early on January 3 that Mr. Maduro was arrested thanks to "coordination from US law enforcement agencies".
Republican Senator Mike Lee of Utah said he spoke to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the morning of January 3rd and the top US diplomat told him that "Mr. Maduro has been arrested by US personnel to be brought to trial for criminal charges in the US".
US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said in an article on X that the administration's campaign has brought "a new rise for Venezuela".
