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Canadian political leaders are celebrating and condemning the United States over its nighttime strikes on the capital city of Venezuela and the subsequent capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
In a statement posted to social media, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said Canada has “refused to recognize any legitimacy of the Maduro regime and opposed its repression of the Venezuelan people, including the persecution of dissenters and particularly political leaders opposed to the regime.”
“In keeping with our long-standing commitment to upholding the rule of law and democracy, Canada calls on all parties to respect international law and we stand by the people of Venezuela and their desire to live in a peaceful and democratic society,” Anand added.
Multiple explosions rang out overnight and low-flying aircraft swept through Caracas, the capital of the oil-rich nation, as Maduro’s government immediately accused the United States of attacking civilian and military installations.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced the developments on his Truth Social platform shortly after 4:30 a.m. ET. He said the U.S. successfully carried out a “large-scale strike” against Venezuela.
In a social media post, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been indicted in the U.S. District Court in the Southern District of New York.
“They will soon face the wrath of American justice on American soil in American courts,” Bondi said.
Later on Saturday morning, Trump told reporters at a news conference that the United States will “run” Venezuela “until such time that we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.”
The situation marks Washington’s most direct intervention in Latin America since the 1989 invasion of Panama.
“Congratulations to President Trump on successfully arresting narco-terrorist and socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro, who should live out his days in prison,” Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said in a social media post on Saturday morning.
“Down with socialism. Long live freedom,” Poilievre added.
Congratulations to President Trump on successfully arresting narco-terrorist and socialist dictator Nicolas Maduro, who should live out his days in prison.
The legitimate winner of the most recent Venezuelan elections, Edmundo González, should take office along with the…
Before Trump officially announced the operation, interim NDP Leader Don Davies reacted to a video of U.S. aircraft striking Caracas and said on social media that “if true, this is a flagrant breach of international law and the rules-based system the U.S. claims to support.”
“Canada must strongly condemn it and call for the immediate cessation of aggression by the U.S. against the sovereign state of Venezuela,” Davies said.
Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet said in French on social media that his party understands Maduro’s regime “defies fundamental freedoms” and faces drug-trafficking allegations.
However, Blanchet said, “it appears troubling” that the U.S. is “is positioning itself as the enforcer of these principles at the risk of disregarding international law, particularly by resorting to military force at the peril of civilian lives, and to the sequestration of a head of state, even if illegitimate.”
“The Bloc Québécois invites the United States to respect the sovereignty of states and peoples and to resort to international and multilateral instruments, first and foremost the [United Nations], to address the threats posed by the Venezuelan regime,” Blanchet said.
