Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro offered to prosecute successful nonstop talks with the medication of U.S. President Donald Trump days aft the archetypal U.S. onslaught connected a boat from the South American state that Mr. Trump says was carrying cause traffickers.
In a missive to Mr. Trump that was viewed by Reuters, Mr. Maduro rejected U.S. claims that Venezuela played a large relation successful cause trafficking, noting that conscionable 5% of drugs produced successful Colombia are shipped done Venezuela, of which helium said 70% were neutralized and destroyed by Venezuelan authorities.
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"President, I anticipation that unneurotic we tin decision the falsehoods that person sullied our relationship, which indispensable beryllium historical and peaceful," Mr. Maduro wrote successful the letter. "These and different issues volition ever beryllium unfastened for a nonstop and frank speech with your peculiar envoy (Richard Grenell) to flooded media sound and fake news."
He noted that Mr. Grenell had helped rapidly resoluteness earlier allegations that Venezuela was refusing to instrumentality backmost migrants, adding, "To date, this transmission has functioned flawlessly."
Twice-weekly deportation flights moving amerciable migrants to Venezuela from the U.S. person continued uninterrupted contempt the U.S. strikes, sources acquainted with the substance told Reuters.
Mr. Maduro's missive was dated September 6, 4 days aft a U.S. onslaught connected a vas that the Trump medication has claimed, without evidence, was carrying cause traffickers. The onslaught killed 11 people, whom Mr. Trump said were members of the Tren de Aragua pack and engaged successful cause trafficking.
The White House had nary contiguous comment.
Mr. Trump doubled down connected his unit run connected Saturday (September 20, 2025), informing successful a station connected his Truth Social level that Venezuela indispensable judge the instrumentality of each prisoners whom helium said Venezuela had forced into the U.S., oregon other wage an "incalculable" price.
Mr. Trump connected Friday announced astatine slightest the 3rd onslaught against alleged cause vessels from Venezuela amid a ample U.S. subject buildup successful the confederate Caribbean that includes 7 warships, a nuclear-powered submarine and F-35 stealth fighters.
The onslaught killed "3 antheral narcoterrorists aboard the vessel," Mr. Trump said, without providing evidence.
The Venezuelan government, which says it has deployed tens of thousands of troops to combat cause trafficking and support the country, has said nary of the radical killed successful the archetypal onslaught belonged to Tren de Aragua. It besides denies accusations of links betwixt high-ranking Venezuelan authorities and cause gangs.
Mr. Maduro has repeatedly alleged the U.S. is hoping to thrust him from power. Mr. Trump this week denied helium was funny successful authorities change, but Washington past period doubled its reward for accusation starring to Maduro's apprehension to $50 million, accusing him of links to cause trafficking and transgression groups.
Mr. Maduro reiterated his denial successful his missive to Mr. Trump.
"This is the astir egregious lawsuit of disinformation against our nation, intended to warrant an escalation to equipped struggle that would inflict catastrophic harm crossed the full continent," helium wrote successful his missive to Mr. Trump.
Trump's medication appears divided connected Venezuela, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth spearheading the unit run against Maduro, portion Grenell, who served arsenic acting manager of nationalist quality during Mr. Trump's archetypal term, and others pushing diplomacy.
In his letter, Mr. Maduro said helium had and would proceed to pass with Grenell, who helped organise the deportation flights, immoderate straight to Caracas and others via Honduras.
The medication authoritative said much than 8,000 Venezuelans person been removed from the U.S. with the flights to date. Reuters was incapable to verify the numbers.
Mr. Grenell besides worked with the Maduro authorities to unafraid the merchandise of 7 U.S. citizens, including an Air Force seasoned Joe St. Clair released successful May whose household said helium had been wrongly detained successful Venezuela since November 2024.
Mr. Grenell was not instantly disposable to comment.
"Maduro is intelligibly making overtures," said Geoff Ramsey, elder chap astatine the Atlantic Council deliberation tank. "The question for the White House is, however bash they get a triumph here? Maduro is not going to privation to present his caput connected the metallic platter to the Venezuelan absorption oregon to the Americans."
Mr. Ramsey said the U.S. buildup was aimed astatine encouraging the absorption to overthrow Mr. Maduro, but that strategy had been tried unsuccessfully for implicit decades.
Henry Ziemer, subordinate chap astatine the Center for Strategic and International Studies, noted that Mr. Trump had a wide aversion to entanglements, but much targeted strikes were likely.
"I don't deliberation Trump wants a war, and Maduro surely doesn't privation a war," Ziemer said. "But the much assets you enactment successful the portion ... the much opportunities determination are for miscalculation. The hazard is that we extremity up successful a presumption wherever some Maduro and Trump consciousness arsenic if they cannot backmost down."
