Maduro says US plan to turn Venezuela into its colony ‘will simply never happen’
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro says US President Donald Trump’s remarks about “reclaiming” Venezuelan land and oil has exposed the United States true intentions, while asserting that Washington can “never” turn the Latin American country into its “colony.”
Speaking at a rally in Caracas on Wednesday, Maduro said Trump’s statements had shown the United States was pursuing regime change and control over Venezuela’s territory and resources.
“It is simply a warmongering and colonialist pretense, and we have said so many times, and now everyone sees the truth. The truth has been revealed,” he said.
Maduro directly addressed Trump’s claims that Venezuela had taken US oil, land, and other assets, saying Washington’s true objective was rather to install a government in Venezuela that would surrender the country’s sovereignty.
“The aim in Venezuela is a regime change to impose a puppet government that wouldn’t last 47 hours, that would hand over the Constitution, sovereignty, and all the wealth, turning Venezuela into a colony. It will simply never happen,” he said.
Trump had made the comments a day earlier on his Truth Social platform, saying the US military buildup around Venezuela would grow until the country returned “the oil, land, and other assets that they previously stole from us.”
Trump also told reporters separately that the United States wanted back “energy rights,” adding, “We’re getting land, oil rights, whatever we had… They took our oil rights.”
Venezuela nationalized its oil sector in the 1970s, significantly reducing the role of US companies that had previously operated extensively in the country’s oilfields.
Trump has repeatedly warned that the United States could carry out strikes against Venezuela and portrayed the country as one “trafficking drugs” into the US.
Earlier, he announced a blockade on sanctioned oil tankers transiting to and from Venezuela.
Trump orders ‘total blockade’ of sanctioned oil tankers to and from Venezuelahttps://t.co/XnomBUf3V3
— Press TV 🔻 (@PressTV) December 17, 2025
In his speech, Maduro also called on Colombia to stand with Venezuela against external pressure.
“I make my call … to the ordinary people of Colombia, to its social movements, to its political forces, to the Colombian military, whom I know very well. I call upon them for a perfect union with Venezuela so that no one dares touch the sovereignty of our countries,” he said.
Maduro later discussed Trump’s comments in a phone call with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, according to a Venezuelan government statement. “President Maduro stressed that such statements must be categorically rejected by the United Nations system, as they constitute a direct threat to sovereignty, international law, and peace,” the statement said.
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