Since the capture of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife by U.S. authorities on 3 January, the Trump administration has expanded its influence over Venezuela’s political leadership and oil sector, including the seizure of several oil cargoes and mounting pressure to resume production. In a first public pushback, acting president Delcy Rodríguez addressed oil workers in Puerto La Cruz, declaring «Enough already of Washington’s orders over politicians in Venezuela». She urged that «Let Venezuelan politics resolve our differences and our internal conflicts» and warned that «This Republic has paid a very high price» confronting extremism. Her remarks came as tensions intensified over U.S. demands and opposition outreach to Washington.
In a first public pushback, acting president Delcy Rodríguez addressed oil workers in Puerto La Cruz, declaring «Enough already of Washington’s orders over politicians in Venezuela». She urged that «Let Venezuelan politics resolve our differences and our internal conflicts» and warned that «This Republic has paid a very high price» confronting extremism. Her remarks came as tensions intensified over U.S. demands and opposition outreach to Washington.
Enough
Since Venezuela has effectively been under the Trump administration’s control following the capture of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife by U.S. authorities on 3 January, Washington has asserted sweeping influence over the country’s political leadership and oil sector, including the seizure of key oil assets. In that context, acting president Delcy Rodríguez signaling a first public pushback against the Trump administration as she declared «enough» while addressing a group of oil workers in the coastal city of Puerto La Cruz. Speaking at an event broadcast by state-run channel Venezolana de Televisión, Rodríguez denounced what she described as U.S. orders imposed on Venezuela, breaking weeks of official restraint and highlighting growing resistance to Washington’s expanding role in the country’s governance and energy industry.
A first public pushback
As the Trump administration has already seized several Venezuelan oil cargoes, Washington has intensified pressure on Caracas over the country’s energy sector, particularly demands to resume and expand oil production. Speaking to oil workers in the coastal city of Puerto La Cruz during an event broadcast by state-run Venezolana de Televisión, acting president Delcy Rodríguez declared «Enough already of Washington’s orders over politicians in Venezuela», signaling a first public pushback against the Trump administration. According to CNN, U.S. officials have recently stepped up pressure on Rodríguez, delivering a series of demands tied to Venezuela’s oil output and export policy, as tensions continue to rise over U.S. influence on the country’s political leadership and strategic resources.
Venezuela’s future
In the same speech, acting president Delcy Rodríguez expanded her criticism of U.S. involvement in Venezuela’s internal affairs, saying «Let Venezuelan politics resolve our differences and our internal conflicts,» before adding that «This Republic has paid a very high price for having to confront the consequences of fascism and extremism in our country.» Her remarks came amid heightened tensions with Washington, after Trump publicly claimed his administration was “going to run” Venezuela following the U.S. operation against the Maduro government. The comments also followed a meeting earlier this month between Trump and opposition leader María Corina Machado at the White House, where Machado presented him her Nobel Peace Prize recognition in an effort to secure Trump’s backing for Venezuela’s future leadership, a move Rodríguez allies have cited as evidence of foreign interference in the country’s political transition.