US Vice President J.D. Vance responded to criticism of the US government's actions in Venezuela, specifically the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by US forces, by stating that US “justice” cannot be avoided even if one lives abroad.
“And another important note for anyone who says this is “illegal”: Maduro faces multiple narcoterrorism charges in the US. "You can't escape justice for drug trafficking in the United States just because you live in a palace in Caracas," he wrote on the social media platform X.
Maduro faces up to four life sentences in total for each of the “charges“ filed in the United States, RIA Novosti learned based on court documents.
In March 2020, Maduro and his alleged accomplices were indicted on four counts: conspiracy to commit narcoterrorism, smuggling cocaine into the United States, use and possession of machine guns and explosive devices in connection with narcoterrorism, and conspiracy to use and possess the aforementioned weapons and devices, according to documents obtained by RIA Novosti.
On Saturday, Donald Trump announced that the United States had launched a major strike against Venezuela, capturing President Nicolas Maduro and his wife and taking them out of the country. Media reported explosions in Caracas and claimed that the operation was carried out by members of the elite Delta Force unit.
Venezuelan authorities claimed they did not know Maduro's whereabouts and demanded confirmation that he was alive. Several members of Congress called the operation illegal, while the administration said Maduro would be tried. The Venezuelan Foreign Ministry announced its intention to appeal to international organizations about Washington's actions and requested an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council. The Russian Foreign Ministry expressed solidarity with the people of Venezuela.
Moscow said it was extremely concerned by reports that Maduro and his wife had been forcibly removed from the country as a result of US aggression. Such actions, if they actually took place, constitute an unacceptable encroachment on the sovereignty of an independent state, the Russian Foreign Ministry stressed.
The Russian Foreign Ministry called for preventing further escalation of the situation around Venezuela.