Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro on Thursday said his government was willing to engage in talks with the United States, weeks after Washington issued warnings and carried out strikes on alleged drug boats off the Venezuelan coast.
Speaking on state television, Maduro said Venezuela was open to discussions with the United States on issues including drug trafficking, oil and migration. “Wherever they want and whenever they want,” he said, responding to a question on possible dialogue with Washington.
However, Maduro stopped short of confirming claims by US President Donald Trump that American forces had attacked a dock in Venezuela allegedly used by drug traffickers. Asked directly about the reported strike, Maduro said it was “something we could talk about in a few days.”
Earlier this week, Trump said US forces had struck and destroyed a docking facility used by Venezuelan drug boats, claiming there was “a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs.”
If verified, the incident would mark the first known land-based strike linked to the US campaign against drug trafficking from Latin America. Trump has repeatedly warned in recent weeks that ground operations against drug cartels in the region could begin soon.
Since September, US forces have also carried out multiple strikes on suspected drug-trafficking vessels in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean.
