Deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife appeared in a federal court in New York City on Monday, following their capture by U.S. forces over the weekend in a military operation in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas.
Following the operation, President Donald Trump said that the U.S. would "run" Venezuela for an unspecified "period of time."
Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez has been sworn in as interim leader to lead the country after what the Venezuelan Supreme Court described as Maduro's "kidnapping."
Venezuela to release 'significant number' of prisoners, top official says
A “significant number” of prisoners will be released as a gesture from the Venezuelan government to “seek peace,” Venezuela’s National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said during a press conference Thursday.
"Consider this gesture by the Bolivarian government, which is broadly intended to seek peace, as the contribution that we must all make to ensure that our Republic continues to live in peace and in pursuit of prosperity," he said, according to an Associated Press translation.
Members of the Bolivarian National Police disembark from a truck, outside the Helicoide detention centre, as the release of foreign and Venezuelan prisoners is expected in Caracas, Venezuela, January 8, 2026.
Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/Reuters
-ABC News' Othon Leyva and Ismario Rodriguez Perez
Jan 08, 2026, 10:00 AM EST
Colombian president agrees to visit White House in coming weeks
Colombian President Gustavo Petro has accepted an invitation to visit the White House to meet with President Donald Trump in the coming weeks, Colombia’s Foreign Minister Rosa Villavicencio said in Bogota Thursday morning.
This comes after the leaders spoke on the phone for about an hour on Wednesday and Trump announced they would be meeting.
-ABC News' Ismario Rodriguez Perez
Jan 08, 2026, 9:57 AM EST
European leaders sound off on recent action by US
European leaders have issued stark criticism of U.S. action in recent days, with French President Macron saying the America is “turning way” from allies, according to Reuters.
"The United States is an established power, but one that is gradually turning away from some of its allies and freeing itself from international rules it promoted not long ago," Macron said, according to Reuters.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier issued similar criticism saying, "There is the breakdown of values by our most important partner, the USA, which helped build this world order."
The M/T M Sophia sails in the Western Atlantic Ocean as it is seized by the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Vigilant, Jan. 7, 2026.
U.S. Navy
"It is about preventing the world from turning into a den of robbers, where the most unscrupulous take whatever they want, where regions or entire countries are treated as the property of a few great powers," Steinmeier said.
Jan 08, 2026, 8:57 AM EST
Russia calls seizure of oil tanker 'illegal'
Russia is calling the U.S. seizure of a Russia-flagged oil tanker in the northern Atlantic Ocean “illegal” and a "flagrant violation" of maritime law.
In a statement, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed the U.S. attempted to seize the Bella-1 in the Caribbean in December and followed it across the Atlantic Ocean. Russia said it notified the U.S. the oil tanker it calls the Mariner was a Russian ship.
“American authorities, including officially through the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, have repeatedly received reliable information regarding the vessel's Russian affiliation and its civilian, peaceful status," the ministry said. "They could not have had any doubts about this, nor was there any basis for speculating that the tanker was sailing 'without a flag' or 'under a false flag.'"
The U.S. Coast Guard seizes the oil tanker Marinera, formally known as the M/V Bella 1 in the North Atlantic, Jan. 7, 2026.
U.S. Coast Guard/X
“The suggestions by individual US officials that the seizure of the Mariner is part of a broader strategy to establish Washington's unlimited control over Venezuela's natural resources are extremely cynical. We resolutely reject such neocolonialist pretensions,” the ministry added. “Washington's willingness to generate acute international crises, including in Russian-American relations, already severely strained by the disagreements of recent years, is regrettable and alarming.”
Russia said the action in the North Atlantic “cannot be interpreted as anything other than a flagrant violation of the fundamental principles and norms of international maritime law and freedom of navigation."
"The Marinera incident can only lead to a further escalation of military and political tensions in the Euro-Atlantic region," the statement said.
