BY EMMANUEL OGBONNA
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said his government is open to negotiating a formal agreement with the United States to combat drug trafficking, signaling a potential opening for dialogue even as relations between the two countries remain deeply strained and marked by military confrontation and mutual accusations.
In a prerecorded interview aired Thursday on Venezuelan state television, Maduro said Caracas is prepared to engage seriously with Washington on counternarcotics cooperation, while sharply criticizing what he described as an ongoing U.S. campaign of pressure and intimidation aimed at toppling his government. The interview, conducted by Spanish journalist Ignacio Ramonet, was recorded on New Year’s Eve.
Maduro declined to comment directly on a drone strike carried out last week at a Venezuelan docking area that U.S. officials believe was used by drug cartels, an operation reportedly led by U.S. intelligence agencies. Instead, he said he would address the incident at a later date, offering few details as questions mounted about the scope of U.S. actions on Venezuelan territory.
Throughout the interview, Maduro reiterated his long-standing claim that Washington’s ultimate objective is regime change in Caracas and access to Venezuela’s vast oil reserves. He said the United States has sought to impose its will through a months-long pressure campaign that intensified in August with a large-scale U.S. military deployment to the Caribbean.
“What are they seeking?” Maduro asked. “It is clear that they want to impose themselves through threats, intimidation and force.” He added that despite the confrontational approach, the time had come for both governments to “start talking seriously, with data in hand.”
Maduro said U.S. officials are well aware of Venezuela’s willingness to cooperate on drug enforcement. According to him, Venezuelan authorities have repeatedly conveyed to American counterparts that Caracas is ready to reach a concrete agreement if Washington is genuinely interested in curbing narcotics trafficking.
“The U.S. government knows, because we have told many of their representatives, that if they want to seriously discuss an agreement to combat drug trafficking, we are ready,” Maduro said.
He also extended an olive branch on the energy front, saying Venezuela remains open to U.S. investment in its oil sector despite years of sanctions. Maduro pointed to Chevron as an example of continued cooperation, noting that the U.S. oil major is currently the only large American company exporting Venezuelan crude to the United States. Venezuela holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves.
“If they want oil, Venezuela is ready for U.S. investment,” Maduro said. “Like with Chevron, whenever they want it, wherever they want it and however they want it.”
The interview aired against the backdrop of an intensifying U.S. military campaign targeting alleged drug traffickers in the region. On the same day the interview was recorded, the U.S. military announced strikes against five suspected drug-smuggling boats. Those attacks brought the total number of known vessel strikes to 35, with at least 115 people killed, according to figures released by the Trump administration. Venezuelan nationals were among the dead.
President Donald Trump has defended the operations as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of narcotics into the United States. He has argued that Washington is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels and that military force is required to disrupt their operations. The strikes initially focused on waters off Venezuela’s Caribbean coast before expanding into the eastern Pacific.
U.S. actions escalated further last week with a drone strike on Venezuelan soil, targeting a docking area believed to be used by drug traffickers. According to people familiar with the operation, it marked the first known direct U.S. strike inside Venezuela since the maritime campaign began, representing a significant intensification of pressure on Maduro’s government.
Maduro, who has been charged in the United States with narco-terrorism offenses that he denies, was asked directly about the strike during the interview. He declined to address it in detail, saying only that he could “talk about it in a few days,” leaving unanswered questions about how Venezuela might respond.
The mixed message from Caracas—combining an offer of dialogue with sharp denunciations of U.S. military actions—underscores the fragile and volatile nature of relations between the two countries. While Maduro’s comments suggest a willingness to negotiate on drug trafficking and energy, the ongoing strikes and deep mistrust on both sides continue to raise the risk of further confrontation, even as both governments signal, at least rhetorically, that channels for discussion remain open.
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