U.S. does not maintain troops on Venezuelan territory, Marco Rubio affirms

Washington.- U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said this Sunday that his country does not have troops on Venezuelan territory, one day after Washington's lightning operation to capture and remove President Nicolás Maduro from Caracas.

"We do not have U.S. forces on the ground in Venezuela," the head of U.S. diplomacy told NBC News. "They were only there for about two hours when they went to capture Maduro," he added.

President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he was prepared to launch a second wave of attacks against Venezuela "much greater than the first", during which Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, would be captured, but that he will not give the order if the vice president and now acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, does what the U.S. wants.

You may be interested in: Rubio clarifies that the U.S. will manage the "direction" in which Venezuela will move without Maduro

Asked about these statements by Trump to the New York Post tabloid, Rubio insisted that Washington will only act to protect its interests. "What President (Trump) is saying is very simple: as president of the United States, he is not going to go around telling people what he is not going to do," he indicated. "Now there are other people in charge of the military and police apparatus there (in Venezuela). They will have to decide now which direction they want to take, and we hope they choose a different direction than the one Nicolás Maduro chose. Ultimately, we hope this leads to a comprehensive transition in Venezuela," he added.

Washington will continue attacking vessels related to drug trafficking

"Until Venezuela addresses the problems it had under the Maduro government, which still persist, it will continue to face pressure from the U.S. The most important thing for us is the security, well-being, and prosperity of the U.S.," insisted the Secretary of State. Rubio also stated that within these efforts, Washington will continue to attack vessels allegedly linked to drug trafficking in the Caribbean and hinted that confiscations of sanctioned oil tankers carrying Venezuelan crude could continue, a tactic they have employed in recent weeks to pressure Caracas. Maduro was arrested in the early hours of this Saturday in a Washington lightning operation dubbed 'Absolute Resolution' along with the Venezuelan first lady, and then transferred to New York, where he faces charges of drug trafficking and corruption.