Former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s public rallies, in which he danced and taunted the United States, in part, motivated President Donald Trump to make good on threats of action.
Members of Trump’s team saw Maduro’s antics as attempts to mock the United States and as signs that he did not take Trump’s threats of action seriously. Maduro believed that Trump’s moves in the Caribbean and pressure to oust Maduro from office were part of a bluff, according to The New York Times.
Maduro’s last chance at a possible offramp came in late December, with an offer from the United States to leave Venezuela and enjoy a lavish exile in Turkey, the Times reported. Maduro rejected the offer, and was soon arrested by U.S. Special Forces and extradited to New York to face trial on drug trafficking charges.
Maduro is expected to appear in a federal court in Manhattan on Monday. The former Venezuelan dictator and his wife are currently being held in a Brooklyn jail.
The United States will keep a close grip on Venezuela’s oil industry and exports, as well as sanctions to maintain leverage on the Venezuelan government. Maduro’s vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, has taken over the government as interim president after an order from the Venezuelan supreme court.
Trump administration officials have voiced optimism that Washington can work with Rodríguez after being unimpressed with opposition leader María Corina Machado, according to the Times. U.S. officials held conversations with Machado about being a possible successor prior to Maduro’s arrest, but Machado failed to convince Trump that she had the influence within the regime to stabilize Venezuela after Maduro’s sudden exit.
The operation to take down Maduro was meticulously planned for months, and telegraphed far ahead of time by Trump as the president ordered numerous warships and 15,000 troops deployed off the coast of Venezuela in the lead-up to the operation, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The operation was aborted a couple of times over concerns about the weather. When the operation moved forward early on Saturday morning, Venezuela’s capital of Caracas was rocked by explosions meant to cover the entry and exit of U.S. troops tasked with arresting and extraditing Maduro.
The operation lasted roughly five hours and was completed with no U.S. fatalities. Maduro arrived in New York City late on Saturday.