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US Senate advances resolution to block further Trump military action in Venezuela

Thursday, 08 January 2026 6:42 PM [ Last Update: Thursday, 08 January 2026 7:20 PM ]

A view of the US Senate chamber on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Photo by Reuters)

The US Senate has advanced a resolution that would bar President Donald Trump from taking further military action against Venezuela without congressional authorization, paving the way for further consideration in the 100-member chamber.

The procedural vote on Thursday to advance the measure passed 52–47, with several Republican senators joining all Democrats in support.

The resolution comes amid heightened concern in Congress over recent US military operations in Venezuela, including a dramatic raid that resulted in the abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Supporters say the measure is a bid to reassert congressional authority over war powers, though its ultimate fate remains uncertain as it moves toward a full Senate debate and faces potential opposition in the House and from the White House.

In a wide-ranging interview with The New York Times on Wednesday, Trump emphasized that the US would be “running Venezuela and extracting oil from its huge reserves for years,” insisting that the country’s interim government, composed entirely of former Maduro loyalists, is “giving us everything that we feel is necessary.”

The administration of US President Donald Trump also announced on Wednesday that Washington would control Venezuelan oil sales “indefinitely” and decide how the proceeds are spent, effectively asserting authority over the country after kidnapping President Maduro.

Trump says US will oversee Venezuela ‘for years’

Trump says the US will oversee Venezuela and its oil indefinitely, boasts of profiting from seized resources.

The announcement follows Maduro’s abduction on Saturday in violation of international law, and Trump’s own claim that Caracas would hand over 30–50 million barrels of oil to Washington as the US plans to “run” the South American country.

These steps are part of a months-long US pressure campaign against Maduro, who faces drug trafficking charges in New York that he strongly denies.

Caracas, however, has time and again firmly denied any connection to drug trafficking and maintained that Washington aimed to overthrow the Venezuelan president in a bid to take control of the nation’s vast oil reserves.

Inside Venezuela, the situation seems unstable, but Delcy Rodríguez, sworn in after Maduro’s abduction, says “there is no foreign agent governing Venezuela.”

Analysts say authorities have not openly responded to US demands, suggesting acceptance under duress or outright coercion, while internal divisions and the stance of the powerful military could still disrupt Washington’s plans.

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