ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq - United States President Donald Trump on Saturday announced that Washington will “run” Venezuela until a “judicious transition” takes place, after he ordered an operation in which the country’s President Nicolas Maduro was captured.

In the early hours of Saturday, US forces carried out a large-scale military operation in Venezuela, employing air, land, and sea assets, which culminated in the capture of Maduro and his wife in the capital Caracas.

“This was one of ‍the most stunning, effective and powerful displays of American military might and competence ‌in American history,” Trump told reporters, describing the operation as a “spectacular assault.”

The American president said that the US was ready for a second, “much bigger,” wave of strikes on Venezuela if needed, but noted “now it’s probably not [necessary].”

“We're going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” Trump added, noting that Washington is not afraid of having “boots on the ground.”

He later explained that the administration is currently designating a group to “run” Venezuela in the aftermath of Maduro’s capture, noting that the the group will “largely” consist of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine “for a period of time.”

Trump also dismissed the possibility of Nobel Peace Prize-winning opposition leader Maria Corina Machado taking the helms as a potential interim leader of Venezuela, claiming: “It would be very tough for her to be the leader. She doesn't have the support within or the respect within the country.”

Minutes before he began the presser at his Florida Mar-a-Lago, Trump published the first picture of Maduro since his arrest, depicting the Venezuelan leader cuffed and blindfolded on board the USS Iwo Jima.

Trump said Maduro and his wife are currently on a New York-bound ship and will soon stand trial on American soil.

Maduro has served as Venezuelan president since 2013 and has been a US bugbear in the region for his avowedly socialist and anti-US imperialism stances.

In August 2025, the US announced that it would increase the bounty for information leading to Maduro's arrest to $50 million.