Russia, China Demand That US Immediately Release Maduro From Custody
Within mere hours after President Trump announced the Saturday capture by US forces of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife after a brief shock bombing campaign and special forces operation in Caracas, Russia has demanded from Washington his immediate release.
"We firmly call on the U.S. leadership to reconsider this position and release the lawfully elected president of a sovereign country and his wife," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement, and described that the crisis should be resolved through diplomatic means.
"Russia will continue to support the course pursued by its Bolivarian leadership to defend the country's national interests and sovereignty," the Foreign Ministry said, while also calling for restraint and cautioning against further escalation.
This of course contradicts the US stance, which maintains that Maduro and his socialist government 'stole' the last July elections which kept him in power.
Moscow's demand that the US release and return Maduro, which is extremely unlikely at this point, comes amid rumors that Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez Gomez is actually in Moscow. Russian officials have called these rumors and reports "fake", however.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meanwhile said he held a phone conversation with Gomez, during which he conveyed his "solidarity with the Venezuelan people in the face of armed aggression."
According to Venezuela's national constitution, the Vice President assumes the power of the presidency, but amid the quick power vacuum opening up, it's anyone's guess what leadership in the country will look like even by next week.
China has joined Moscow's calls for the immediate release of Maduro from US custody:
China has called on the United States to immediately release Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro after Washington carried out massive military strikes on the capital, Caracas, as well as other regions, and abducted the leader.
Beijing on Sunday insisted the safety of Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores be a priority, and called on the US to "stop toppling the government of Venezuela," calling the attack a "clear violation of international law".
Russia's embassy in Caracas has made clear it is continuing to operate normally and remains in close communication with both Venezuelan officials and Russian nationals in the country. It confirmed in a statement that no Russian citizens were killed or injured in the attack.
There are reports that 40 people total died during the assault - possibly mostly at the large military bases struck in and around the capital, as the NY Times writes, "At least 40 people were killed in the U.S. attack on Venezuela early Saturday, including military personnel and civilians, according to a senior Venezuelan official who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe preliminary reports."
News: The CIA covertly installed a small team inside Venezuela over the summer, to track Maduro’s patterns, locations and movements, which helped bolster Saturday’s operation as to his exact whereabouts and where he would be sleeping, a sources familiar with the plans tell me…
— Alayna Treene (@alaynatreene) January 3, 2026
China, Russia, Iran and other US rivals have vehemently condemned what they've characterized as a brazen act of aggression in the regime change operation. As months of US military build-up in the region unfolded, there was ample speculation that a full land invasion would ensue, or else kinetic strikes on cartel locations; however, few analysts could have envisioned a relatively clean special forces kidnapping op of a head of state. Currently, it is widely believed there must have been high-ranking military officials assisting the US behind the scenes - given just how quickly Maduro was apprehended in the capital.