What’s Next for Venezuela: Trump’s Plans and Supreme Court Response
During his news conference, US President Donald Trump announced that the United States would “run” Venezuela until a new leader is chosen, saying Washington intends to ensure the country is “run properly” and that the operation was not carried out in vain. He did not rule out the deployment of US troops, stating that he was “not afraid of boots on the ground if we have to.”
Trump also ruled out working with opposition figure and Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado, arguing that she “doesn’t have the support or respect within the country.”
Meanwhile, the Constitutional Chamber of Venezuela’s Supreme Court ordered Vice President Delcy Rodríguez to serve as acting president following Maduro’s abduction. The ruling stated that Rodríguez would assume “the office of President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in order to guarantee administrative continuity and the comprehensive defence of the Nation.”
The court added that it would establish the legal framework needed to ensure continuity of government and the defence of sovereignty in the face of the president’s forced absence. Trump reiterated that the US would not occupy Venezuela — provided, as he put it, that Rodríguez “does what we want.”
The path ahead remains uncertain, with the country entering a sensitive transitional phase amid intense international scrutiny.
