Venezuela’s President Maduro to Appear in US Federal Court Today

DID Press: Nicolás Maduro, the president of Venezuela, is scheduled to appear on Monday at 12:00 p.m. local time (17:00 GMT) before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The New York Times reported that his wife, Cilia Adela Flores de Maduro, will also attend the hearing, during which the indictments are expected to be read.

According to court documents, Maduro faces charges of conspiring to commit “narcoterrorism,” conspiring to import cocaine into the United States, and possessing weapons and explosives against the United States.

These developments follow recent events in Venezuela. On January 3, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yván Gil Pinto said the United States had targeted both civilian and military sites in Caracas, describing the operation as “a military aggression.” A state of emergency was subsequently declared in the country.

Meanwhile, Russia’s Foreign Ministry issued a statement calling the U.S. military action against Venezuela “highly worrying and condemnable.” Russian diplomats stressed that the priority should be preventing further escalation and seeking a solution through dialogue, and they urged Washington to release Maduro and his wife.

The U.S. incursion into Venezuelan territory and the arrest of the country’s president has triggered widespread global reactions, with critics warning that violating international law and the sovereignty of a nation could further destabilize the international system.