Showing posts with label Maduro. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Maduro. Show all posts
Monday, October 12, 2026
Sunday, January 18, 2026
How Vatican diplomats tried to resolve the Trump-Maduro standoff
by Kevin Clarke
January 16, 2026
Pope Leo XIV greets Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, during a meeting at the Vatican with priests who staff nunciatures and other Vatican diplomatic missions around the world Nov. 17, 2025. Credit: CNS photo/Vatican Media
American Catholics may have been surprised to learn through a report in The Washington Post of the significant involvement of Vatican diplomats in negotiations to resolve the standoff between the Trump administration and the Maduro government in Venezuela.
While the rest of the Catholic world enjoyed its Christmas Eve, Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin was meeting with Brian Burch, the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, discussing a deal that would allow Venezuela’s President Nicholás Maduro to escape to a comfortable exile in Russia before shots might be fired. Vatican officials in the end were unable to persuade Mr. Maduro to accept that option before his defenestration by U.S. Special Forces on Jan. 3.
Veteran Vatican journalist Victor Gaetan was less surprised by The Post’s account of the frenetic last-minute diplomacy aimed at the peaceful removal of Mr. Maduro. Mr. Gaetan is the author of God’s Diplomats: Pope Francis, Vatican Diplomacy and America’s Armageddon.
He saw in it a familiar example of the Vatican’s engaged and patient diplomacy—though this account offered a few surprises. Among those, Mr. Gaetan was impressed by the apparent reach of Vatican officials into Vladimir Putin’s inner circle in Moscow.
American Catholics may have been surprised to learn through a report in The Washington Post of the significant involvement of Vatican diplomats in negotiations to resolve the standoff between the Trump administration and the Maduro government in Venezuela.
While the rest of the Catholic world enjoyed its Christmas Eve, Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin was meeting with Brian Burch, the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See, discussing a deal that would allow Venezuela’s President Nicholás Maduro to escape to a comfortable exile in Russia before shots might be fired. Vatican officials in the end were unable to persuade Mr. Maduro to accept that option before his defenestration by U.S. Special Forces on Jan. 3.
Veteran Vatican journalist Victor Gaetan was less surprised by The Post’s account of the frenetic last-minute diplomacy aimed at the peaceful removal of Mr. Maduro. Mr. Gaetan is the author of God’s Diplomats: Pope Francis, Vatican Diplomacy and America’s Armageddon.
He saw in it a familiar example of the Vatican’s engaged and patient diplomacy—though this account offered a few surprises. Among those, Mr. Gaetan was impressed by the apparent reach of Vatican officials into Vladimir Putin’s inner circle in Moscow.
The Vatican’s cautious approach to Venezuela, explained
Inés San Martín | Crux Now
Jan 15, 2026
\A man becomes emotional as people in Madrid celebrate Jan. 3 in reaction to the news that the U.S. had captured Venezuela’s president, Nicolas Maduro. (OSV News/Violeta Santos Moura)
As of Jan. 3, nearly 8 million Venezuelans forced to live outside their country were joined by Nicolás Maduro, the man whose policies and crimes led them to diaspora. The news of his seizure by U.S. military forces and that of his wife, Cilia Flores, to face drug-related charges in New York may be the biggest event in Latin America in decades.
Venezuela has spent the better part of the last decade in an informal state of collapse, with “elections” that settle almost nothing, armed actors and foreign patrons operating in the shadows; and a humanitarian emergency so vast it has reshaped an entire continent.
To some, the cautious response so far from Catholic leadership in Venezuela and Pope Leo XIV may come across as weak. But in reality, it reflects a hard-learned understanding that words are not cost-free in a country where power is enforced not through law, but through fear, surveillance, and unlawful imprisonment.
With that in mind, here are a few thoughts.
As of Jan. 3, nearly 8 million Venezuelans forced to live outside their country were joined by Nicolás Maduro, the man whose policies and crimes led them to diaspora. The news of his seizure by U.S. military forces and that of his wife, Cilia Flores, to face drug-related charges in New York may be the biggest event in Latin America in decades.
Venezuela has spent the better part of the last decade in an informal state of collapse, with “elections” that settle almost nothing, armed actors and foreign patrons operating in the shadows; and a humanitarian emergency so vast it has reshaped an entire continent.
To some, the cautious response so far from Catholic leadership in Venezuela and Pope Leo XIV may come across as weak. But in reality, it reflects a hard-learned understanding that words are not cost-free in a country where power is enforced not through law, but through fear, surveillance, and unlawful imprisonment.
With that in mind, here are a few thoughts.
Tuesday, January 06, 2026
Pope Leo: ‘The good of the beloved Venezuelan people must prevail over every other consideration.’
by Colleen Dulle
January 4, 2026
A man draped in a Venezuelan flag becomes emotional as people celebrate in Madrid Jan. 3, 2026, as they react to the news after U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. has struck Venezuela and captured its President Nicolas Maduro. Credit: OSV News photo/Violeta Santos Moura
In his first public comments since the U.S. military operation that captured Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3, Pope Leo XIV called for “safeguarding the country’s sovereignty” and “ensuring the rule of law enshrined in the [Venezuelan] Constitution.”
Speaking at his Sunday Angelus on Jan. 4, the American-born pope said he was following developments in Venezuela “with deep concern,” adding, “The good of the beloved Venezuelan people must prevail over every other consideration.”
“This must lead to the overcoming of violence, and to the pursuit of paths of justice and peace, guaranteeing the sovereignty of the country, ensuring the rule of law enshrined in its Constitution, respecting the human and civil rights of each and every person, and working together to build a peaceful future of cooperation, stability and harmony, with special attention to the poorest who are suffering because of the difficult economic situation,” the pope said.
Mr. Maduro and his wife were captured by U.S. special forces in a nighttime raid on Venezuela’s capital city of Caracas on Jan. 3. They have been taken to the United States, where they are expected to be charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine-importation conspiracy and weapons charges in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
The attack followed weeks of escalating tensions between the two nations, as the United States accused Maduro of being a “narco-terrorist” and sought to interdict shipping coming to and from the South American nation. Venezuelan officials said at least 40 Venezuelans were killed in the American attack.
In his first public comments since the U.S. military operation that captured Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 3, Pope Leo XIV called for “safeguarding the country’s sovereignty” and “ensuring the rule of law enshrined in the [Venezuelan] Constitution.”
Speaking at his Sunday Angelus on Jan. 4, the American-born pope said he was following developments in Venezuela “with deep concern,” adding, “The good of the beloved Venezuelan people must prevail over every other consideration.”
“This must lead to the overcoming of violence, and to the pursuit of paths of justice and peace, guaranteeing the sovereignty of the country, ensuring the rule of law enshrined in its Constitution, respecting the human and civil rights of each and every person, and working together to build a peaceful future of cooperation, stability and harmony, with special attention to the poorest who are suffering because of the difficult economic situation,” the pope said.
Mr. Maduro and his wife were captured by U.S. special forces in a nighttime raid on Venezuela’s capital city of Caracas on Jan. 3. They have been taken to the United States, where they are expected to be charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine-importation conspiracy and weapons charges in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
The attack followed weeks of escalating tensions between the two nations, as the United States accused Maduro of being a “narco-terrorist” and sought to interdict shipping coming to and from the South American nation. Venezuelan officials said at least 40 Venezuelans were killed in the American attack.
Monday, January 05, 2026
Sunday, January 04, 2026
Pope Leo says his soul is ‘full of concern’ over Venezuela and calls for country to remain independent
Pope Leo was speaking to pilgrims in St. Peter's Square during his weekly Sunday prayer
Susan Heavey & Jana WinterSunday 04 January 2026 15:45 GMT
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Pope Leo has expressed concern over the unfolding situation in Venezuela, urging that the nation upholds its independence and respects human rights.
Speaking to pilgrims in St. Peter's Square during his weekly Sunday prayer, the pontiff declared his "soul full of concern", adding that "the good of the beloved Venezuelan people must prevail over every other consideration."
It comes as Venezuela's toppled leader Nicolas Maduro sits in a New York detention center on Sunday awaiting drug charges after President Donald Trump ordered an audacious raid to capture him, saying the U.S. would take control of the oil-producing nation.
The image of the 63-year-old Maduro blindfolded and handcuffed en route to the U.S. has stunned Venezuelans and was Washington's most controversial intervention in Latin America since the invasion of Panama 37 years ago.
Maduro, who wished his captors a "Happy New Year" on arrival, is due to appear in a Manhattan court on Monday.
Pope Leo said the good of the Venezuelan people must prevail over everything else (Filippo MONTEFORTE / AFP via Getty Images)
Saturday, January 03, 2026
Sunday, December 07, 2025
How a (Jesuit) Priest Became a Confidant of Venezuela’s Maduro
ANALYSIS: Father Numa Molina’s close ties to Venezuela’s president have inflamed friction with the nation’s bishops, who accuse the regime of persecution and economic devastation.
Jonah McKeown World December 5, 2025
Tensions remain high between the United States and Venezuela amid numerous boat strikes in the Caribbean by the U.S. military that have killed more than 80 people since early September. Though the Trump administration says the strikes are intended to stop drug smuggling, U.S. Catholic leaders have sharply opposed the alleged targeting of civilians and survivors.
Nicolás Maduro, who has led Venezuela into a 12-year tailspin that has included rampant inflation, numerous human rights abuses and the departure of millions of emigres, reportedly believes he can cling to power despite the crisis.
Pope Leo, speaking during a recent press conference on the papal flight from Lebanon to Rome, said the Holy See is working with the Venezuelan bishops’ conference and the nuncio to calm tensions after Trump’s recent threats to take further military action in Venezuela. As of Dec. 3, Trump and Maduro reportedly spoke by phone about a possible meeting.
Amid the geopolitical uncertainty, an obscure but influential figure has the ear of Venezuela’s autocratic president: a Jesuit priest, whose openly socialist views have put him at odds with the nation’s Catholic hierarchy.
Jesuit Father Numa Molina, 68, became a confidant of Maduro’s after previously meeting and gaining the trust of his predecessor, President Hugo Chávez, who ruled Venezuela from 1998 until his death in 2013 and whom Father Molina has called a “prophet.”
Left: Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro gestures during a meeting at the Eurobuilding Hotel in Caracas on Nov. 14. Right: Father Numa Molina, whose association with President Maduro has drawn attention. (photo: Federico Parra / AFP via Getty Images and X/@numamolina)
Jonah McKeown World December 5, 2025
Tensions remain high between the United States and Venezuela amid numerous boat strikes in the Caribbean by the U.S. military that have killed more than 80 people since early September. Though the Trump administration says the strikes are intended to stop drug smuggling, U.S. Catholic leaders have sharply opposed the alleged targeting of civilians and survivors.
Nicolás Maduro, who has led Venezuela into a 12-year tailspin that has included rampant inflation, numerous human rights abuses and the departure of millions of emigres, reportedly believes he can cling to power despite the crisis.
Pope Leo, speaking during a recent press conference on the papal flight from Lebanon to Rome, said the Holy See is working with the Venezuelan bishops’ conference and the nuncio to calm tensions after Trump’s recent threats to take further military action in Venezuela. As of Dec. 3, Trump and Maduro reportedly spoke by phone about a possible meeting.
Amid the geopolitical uncertainty, an obscure but influential figure has the ear of Venezuela’s autocratic president: a Jesuit priest, whose openly socialist views have put him at odds with the nation’s Catholic hierarchy.
Jesuit Father Numa Molina, 68, became a confidant of Maduro’s after previously meeting and gaining the trust of his predecessor, President Hugo Chávez, who ruled Venezuela from 1998 until his death in 2013 and whom Father Molina has called a “prophet.”
Friday, November 21, 2025
Tuesday, November 18, 2025
Sunday, November 09, 2025
Tuesday, November 04, 2025
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