US President Donald Trump on Friday played down suggestions that Washington could launch a dramatic operation against Russian President Vladimir Putin similar to the raid that led to the capture of Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro, saying such a move was “not necessary” even as he voiced deep disappointment over the Ukraine war.
Asked about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s cryptic remarks hinting that Putin could be next after Maduro’s seizure, Trump told reporters, “I don’t think it’s going to be necessary. I think we’re going to have a – and always had – a great relationship with him.”
Speaking during a meeting with top US oil and gas executives, Trump added that he was “very disappointed” the conflict had not yet ended. “I settled eight wars. I thought this would be in the middle of the pack or maybe one of the easier ones,” he said, referring to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has been raging since 2022.
Putin is currently the subject of an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court in The Hague over alleged war crimes in Ukraine, a factor that has further complicated diplomatic efforts to end the fighting.
Zelensky’s hint after Maduro’s arrest
The comments came a week after a shock US military operation in Caracas saw former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro dragged from his residence in a pre-dawn raid and flown to the United States to face trial on drug-trafficking and other charges. The unprecedented action rattled governments across the world and emboldened some of Washington’s allies.
Zelensky, whose country continues to resist Russian forces, made an oblique reference to Putin while reacting to the Maduro episode, saying that if this is how a “dictator” must be treated, then “the United States knows what to do next.”
Trump, however, publicly rejected the notion that he would order a similar mission against the Russian leader.
Recounting the human cost of the war, Trump said he regretted not being able to stop it sooner. “Last month, they lost 31,000 people. Many of them were Russian soldiers. The Russian economy is doing poorly. I think we are going to end up getting it settled. I wish we could have done it quicker because a lot of people are dying, mostly soldiers,” he said.
How Maduro was captured
According to accounts released by Washington, the operation in Venezuela unfolded just after midnight in Caracas, when US jets carried out airstrikes across the city before elite Delta Force troops stormed Maduro’s residence.
He and his wife, Cilia Flores, were taken into custody and flown to a US military base before being transported to New York aboard the USS Jima, an amphibious assault ship.
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Maduro’s vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, has since assumed the presidency, even as she condemned what she called a “serious, criminal, illegal and illegitimate attack” by the United States. Despite the strong language, Caracas and Washington have begun exploratory talks on restoring diplomatic ties, with US diplomats already in the Venezuelan capital to assess the reopening of the embassy.
Oil, prisoners and protests
Trump has tied the post-Maduro transition closely to Venezuela’s vast oil wealth, pressing American energy companies to invest while promising them “total security” under a new arrangement in which firms would deal only with Washington, not Caracas.
He has claimed oil companies are ready to pour up to $100 billion into the country and announced plans for the US to sell tens of millions of barrels of Venezuelan crude, with proceeds used at his discretion.
At the same time, Venezuelan authorities have begun releasing political prisoners, a move Washington says was secured after the US raid.
Families gathered outside jails in Caracas on Friday hoping for reunions, while Trump said he would meet next week with opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.
The dramatic developments have also sparked anger on the streets. Protesters in Caracas have rallied daily demanding Maduro’s release and rejecting US control over the country’s resources.
“We don’t have to give one little drop of oil to Trump after all that he has done to us,” said Josefina Castro, 70, a civil activist. “Our Venezuelan brothers died in the attack, and that hurts.”
