Venezuela's authoritarian regime said it was willing to work with Washington to take back Venezuelan criminals from the U.S. in a rare show of support for President Trump's plans to designate Latin American drug gangs as terrorist groups.

By Andrea Shalal and Jeff Mason WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that his administration would likely stop buying oil from Venezuela and was looking "very strongly" at the South American country.

It remains unclear how many Americans are currently held in Venezuela following the significant prisoner swap in 2023 when Washington and Caracas negotiated the release of dozens of prisoners, including 10 Americans, in exchange for Colombian businessman Alex Saab, a close ally of Maduro.

Venezuelans once again watched as Nicolás Maduro was sworn into office on Friday, donning the executive sash and declaring himself president despite irregularities and questions around his election.

Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro began a third term as president on Friday, cementing his increasingly authoritarian rule.

The Maduro government says it has arrested at least nine U.S. citizens in the months since Venezuela’s widely discredited presidential election.

The Biden administration’s shift to a more pragmatic and strategic approach to Venezuela’s opposition has allowed for the recognition of opposition leaders and the imposition of

Yesterday, opposition leader María Corina Machado posted a video on social media saying the moment was not right for his return. Recorded in hiding, she promised: “Edmundo will come to Venezuela to be sworn in as constitutional president of Venezuela at the right time.”

The US ruling class is approaching a consensus on the use of further economic devastation and potentially military force to oust Maduro and secure control over the world’s largest oil reserves.

As many as 10 Americans are behind bars in Venezuela as President Nicolas Maduro prepares to be sworn in for a third term.

Allowing Venezuela’s criminal state to persist is not an option. Its exportation of illicit drugs and violence destabilizes Latin America and endangers U.S. security.

Venezuela’s recent election protest “unfolded as it was always destined to: [Nicolás] Maduro, the architect of Venezuela’s deepening despair, remained in power,” mourns Robert Ampuero at The Free