Episode Details

The United States will take interim control of Venezuela after capturing President Nicolas Maduro and does not rule out deploying US troops on the ground, US President Donald Trump said on Saturday, as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned the US strikes set "a dangerous precedent".

"We're going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition," Trump said during a news conference ‍at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, hours after a US overnight attack on the South American country.

A US occupation "won't cost us a anything" because the United States would be reimbursed from the "money coming out of the ground", Trump said, referring to Venezuela's oil reserves. Trump said American energy companies would rebuild Venezuela's broken infrastructure under US supervision.

The president also said that the military operation against Maduro was not necessarily over, warning that the US stood ready to escalate if required.

"We are ready to stage a second and much larger attack if we need to do so," Trump said, although he added that the initial operation was so successful that "we probably don't have to do a second."

He also said that US troops could remain on the ground in Venezuela during the interim period.

"We're not afraid of boots on the ground if we have to have [them]," he said, pointing out that American forces had already operated inside the country. "We had boots on the ground last night at a very high level," he added.

Guterres is "deeply alarmed" by US military action in Venezuela that sets "a dangerous precedent", his spokesperson said on Saturday.

"These developments constitute a dangerous precedent," Guterres' spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement. "The ‌secretary-general continues to emphasize the importance of full respect — by all — of international law, including the UN Charter. He's deeply ⁠concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected."

Moments after Trump announced the ‍US w