How world leaders reacted to Trump’s seize of Venezuelan chief Nicolás Maduro

The audacious capture of Nicolas Maduro has left the world reeling – with leaders across the globe both celebrating and condemning America’s military action.

Venezuela’s president was yesterday plucked from power following a daring US military operation ordered by President Donald Trump. 

Trump has since said that the United States would run Venezuela at least temporarily and tap its vast oil reserves to sell to other nations. 

The extraordinary action put an end to an intensive Trump administration pressure campaign on the South American nation and its autocratic leader. 

Maduro and his wife, who were seized overnight from their home on a military base, were first taken aboard a US warship on their way to face prosecution for a Justice Department indictment accusing them of participating in a narco-terrorism conspiracy. 

Trump later shared a shocking photo of Maduro on board the USS Iwo Jima on social media, showing the captured Venezuelan leader wearing a black blindfold and a grey tracksuit.

A plane believed to be carrying the deposed leader landed in New York on Saturday evening. 

Venezuela’s vice president demanded in a speech that the US free Maduro and called him the country’s rightful leader. 

Meanwhile, world leaders have reacted to the attack on Venezuela, with several divided between jubilation and condemnation. 

A squirming Sir Keir Starmer refused to back or condemn Trump’s military action against Venezuela.

The Prime Minister said he was waiting to ‘establish all the facts’ after the US captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and flew him out of the country in an extraordinary military operation.

When the BBC pressed him on whether he believed the US had broken international law, Sir Keir refused to condemn Trump’s actions, reiterating that ‘we need to establish the full picture’.

Speaking to BBC presenter Laura Kuenssberg on Saturday, he added: ‘I don’t shy away from this. I’ve been a lifelong advocate of international law and the importance of compliance with international law.

‘But I want to ensure that I’ve got all the facts at my disposal, and we haven’t got that at the moment, and we need to get that before we come to a decision about the consequences in relation to the actions that have been taken.’

Britain’s Reform UK Party leader Nigel Farage called America’s actions ‘unorthodox and contrary’ but said that ‘they make China and Russia think twice, it may be a good thing.’

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated Trump for his ‘bold and historic leadership on behalf of freedom and justice.

‘I salute your decisive role and the brilliant action of your brave soldiers,’ he added. 

Meanwhile Argentinian leader Javier Milei hailed the ousting of Maduro as ‘excellent news for the free world’. 

‘What we have to understand is that it’s the collapse of the regime of a dictator that was rigging elections, that in the last election was badly defeated and, despite that, he clinged on to power.’ 

Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa celebrated Trump’s actions, writing on X: ‘The time is coming for all the narco-Chavista criminals. Their structure will finally collapse across the entire continent.’

Meanwhile, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky insinuated that Trump should deal with Russia’s Vladimir Putin in a similar way for his full-scale invasion of Ukraine. 

Speaking in a press conference on Saturday after a meeting with European national security advisors, the Ukrainian leader wryly said: ‘How should I react to this? What can I say?’

‘If it’s possible to deal with dictators this way, then the US knows what to do next’. 

French President Emmanuel Macron said: ‘The Venezuelan people are today rid of Nicolás Maduro’s dictatorship and can only rejoice.

‘By seizing power and trampling on fundamental freedoms, Nicolás Maduro gravely undermined the dignity of his own people.’

He called for the transition to be ‘peaceful, democratic and respectful.’  

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the legal assessment of the US operation is complex and  ‘we will take our time’ to evaluate it, adding that principles of international law must apply. 

He urged that ‘a transition to a government legitimised by elections must be ensured’ and warned that ‘political instability must not arise in Venezuela’.

Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that while his government did not recognise the Maduro regime, it would also not recognise ‘an intervention that violates international law and pushes the region toward a horizon of uncertainty and belligerence’.

A spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said: ‘These developments constitute a dangerous precedent.

‘The Secretary-General continues to emphasise the importance of full respect – by all – of international law, including the UN Charter. 

‘He’s deeply concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected.’ 

Russia condemned the US’ ‘act of armed aggression against Venezuela’, calling Trump’s military operation ‘deeply concerning and condemnable’. 

Mexico’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it ‘strongly condemns and rejects the military actions carried out unilaterally in recent hours by the armed forces of the United States of America against targets in the territory of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, in clear violation of Article 2 of the Charter of the United Nations.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro said his government viewed ‘with deep concern’ the airstrikes on Venezuela.

Meanwhile, Venezuelan migrants around the world erupted in celebration on Saturday following the deposition of Maduro. 

His government oversaw one of the world’s largest migration exoduses in recent history. 

Chants celebrating Maduro’s capture were heard on the streets of capital cities in Latin America and in Spain, where Venezuelans gathered to share their joy – and wonder what the future could hold. 

‘We are free. We are all happy that the dictatorship has fallen and that we have a free country,’ said Khaty Yanez, a Venezuelan woman in Santiago who has spent the last seven years in Chile.

‘My joy is too big,’ her compatriot Jose Gregorio said. ‘After so many years, after so many struggles, after so much work, today is the day. Today is the day of freedom.’

Since 2014, some 7.7 million Venezuelans or 20 percent of the population have left the country, unable to afford food or seeking better opportunities abroad, according to the U.N. International Organization for Migration, opens new tab.

Neighbouring Colombia has received the largest share of the diaspora, with around 2.8 million Venezuelans, followed by 1.7 million in Peru, according to the R4V platform, a group of regional NGOs assisting migrants and refugees from Venezuela set up by the U.N. migration agency.

For years, the U.S. was a haven for Venezuelans but many were branded criminals and forced to seek refuge elsewhere during President Donald Trump’s second term.

In Spain, thousands of people gathered at central Madrid’s Puerta del Sol and applauded as they watched Trump give a live press conference.

Groups of Venezuelans were also expected to gather to celebrate in Argentina’s capital Buenos Aires.