Why Maduro says Donald Trump risks ‘bloody hands’ in Venezuela
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has warned that U.S. military pressure on his country could drag Washington into a continental war, accusing U.S. President Donald Trump of risking a legacy “stained with South American blood.”
At a press conference, Maduro alleged that eight U.S. warships, including a nuclear submarine, were positioned near Venezuela with “1,200 missiles pointing at the heads of Venezuelans.”
He described it as the “most brutal, extravagant, and unjustified military threat in the history of Latin America and the Caribbean.”
Maduro directly addressed Trump, warning him against advisers he said were pushing for military escalation, specifically singling out U.S. Senator Marco Rubio.
“President Trump, you have to be careful because Marco Rubio wants to stain your hands with blood with South American blood, Caribbean blood, Venezuelan blood. They want to drag you into a bloodbath and that your last name be stained with blood for centuries,” Maduro said.
The Venezuelan leader argued that any U.S. attack would not be limited to his country, but would trigger widespread conflict across South America and the Caribbean.
Maduro insisted Venezuela’s defence plan, developed over 20 years, is primarily non-violent, focusing on organisation, training, production, and diplomacy. But he warned that if attacked, Venezuela would declare itself a “Republic in arms.”
“If Venezuela were attacked, it would immediately move into the period of armed struggle in defence of the national territory, history, and people of Venezuela,” he said. “Armed struggle and Republic in arms. From north to south, east to west.”
Maduro said Venezuela keeps communication channels with Washington open, calling dialogue a “golden rule” inherited from his predecessor, Hugo Chávez. Still, he claimed those channels had been “battered” by what he called “gunboat diplomacy.”
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
