Machado pledges return as Venezuela faces uncertain transition

“The Daily Baku” reports that Trump, however, appears for now to favour working with interim president Delcy Rodríguez and other senior figures from Maduro’s former government, a stance that has disappointed the opposition and deepened unease across Venezuela.

“I’m planning to go back to Venezuela as soon as possible,” said Machado, 58, an industrial engineer and mother of three who fled the country in disguise in October to attend the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony, which she dedicated to Trump.

“We believe this transition must move forward,” she told Fox News. “We won the 2024 election by a landslide under fraudulent conditions. In free and fair elections, we would win more than 90% of the vote.”

Machado said she has not spoken to Trump since October 10, when the Nobel award was announced. Trump has argued that Venezuela’s problems must be resolved before elections can take place, calling a proposed 30-day election timeline unrealistic.

“We have to fix the country first. You can’t have an election,” Trump told NBC. “There’s no way people could even vote.”

In her first interview since Maduro was captured by US forces over the weekend, Machado declined to disclose her current location or provide details of her return plans. She remains wanted for arrest in Venezuela, where Socialist Party loyalists still hold key positions of power.

Trump’s reluctance to openly back Machado has dismayed Venezuela’s vast diaspora, with roughly one in five citizens having left the country during the economic collapse under Maduro and his predecessor Hugo Chávez. The opposition, international observers and many US allies say the 2024 election was stolen; Machado herself was barred from running and replaced by an ally. Trump, however, has claimed she lacks sufficient domestic support.

Rodríguez, a staunch Maduro loyalist, has condemned his “kidnapping” while also calling for cooperation and respectful relations with Washington. Machado rejected any notion that Rodríguez could be a credible partner.

“Delcy Rodríguez is one of the main architects of torture, persecution, corruption and narco-trafficking,” Machado said. “She is closely aligned with Russia, China and Iran, cannot be trusted by international investors, and is rejected by the Venezuelan people.”

Machado said she intends to personally present Trump with her Nobel Prize.

“He has shown the world what he stands for. January 3 will be remembered as the day justice defeated tyranny,” she said, referring to Saturday’s raid. She praised Trump’s “historic actions” against what she described as a narco-terrorist regime and called the intervention “a huge step toward democratic transition.”

She argued that a post-Maduro Venezuela, with the world’s largest proven oil reserves and the US as a key ally, could become the Americas’ energy hub, restore the rule of law, reopen markets, bring exiles home and guarantee security for foreign investors.

US intelligence officials, however, have reportedly advised Trump that Rodríguez and other senior figures from Maduro’s government are the best option to maintain stability. Venezuelan authorities have ordered the arrest of anyone suspected of cooperating with Maduro’s seizure, and 14 journalists were briefly detained in Caracas on Monday.

Verified footage showed shots fired into the air in Caracas on Monday night, which officials said were warning shots by police to deter unauthorised drones.

“There was no confrontation. The entire country remains completely calm,” said communications vice minister Simón Arrechider.

With nearly 900 political prisoners still incarcerated, according to a leading human rights group, Machado’s Vente Venezuela movement demanded their immediate release as a first step toward restoring democracy.

Maduro, 63, pleaded not guilty on Monday to US narcotics charges, insisting he was a “decent man” and still Venezuela’s president as he appeared shackled in a Manhattan courtroom. He is accused of overseeing a cocaine-trafficking network linked to international cartels, allegations he has long denied, calling them a cover for foreign attempts to seize Venezuela’s oil.

Venezuela holds an estimated 303 billion barrels of oil, mostly heavy crude, but production has collapsed due to mismanagement, underinvestment and US sanctions. Output averaged about 1.1 million barrels per day last year, far below levels seen in the 1970s.

Rodríguez has now been sworn in as interim president, becoming Venezuela’s first female head of state, as officials oscillate between defiance and tentative cooperation with Washington. Trump has warned of further military action if his demands are ignored.

The intervention — the largest US military action in Latin America since Panama in 1989 — has drawn condemnation from Russia, China and leftist governments in the region. Legal experts have questioned its legality, while allies have urged respect for international law.

“It sends a message that the powerful can do whatever they want,” the UN human rights office said on Tuesday.

Trump has declared that the US is now effectively in charge of Venezuela and will revive its oil sector with private companies. He has also floated the possibility of military action in Colombia and Mexico.

“The history of Latin America is clear,” said Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum. “Intervention has never brought democracy, prosperity or lasting stability.”