Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro met a Chinese envoy just hours before the US launched a strike in Caracas and captured him. Maduro received Qiu Xiaoqi, a special representative of the Chinese government on Latin America affairs.
Notably, the two met at the the Miraflores Palace in Caracas, where Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were later captured by the US military forces early Saturday morning.
“I had a pleasant meeting with Qiu Xiaoqi, Special Envoy of President Xi Jinping,” Maduro said on Telegram. “We reaffirmed our commitment to the strategic relationship that is progressing and strengthening in various areas for building a multipolar world of development and peace,” he said, as quoted by Anadolu Agency.
🇨🇳🇻🇪Just a few hours ago, Maduro met in Caracas with a special envoy of Xi Jinping
It is unknown whether the Chinese delegation managed to leave Venezuela.
It is possible that Chinese officials are now watching events unfold from the front row. pic.twitter.com/rgL7AwZt77
— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) January 3, 2026
Maduro and his wife arrived in New York late Saturday afternoon aboard a US aircraft to face federal criminal charges following the military operation that led to their capture in Caracas.
According to US authorities, Maduro and Flores were initially transported by helicopter to the amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7), one of more than a dozen US warships deployed in the Caribbean Sea. The pair were later flown to the US Naval Station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, before being transferred to Stewart Air National Guard Base in New York.
Speaking from Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, US President Donald Trump described the operation as an unprecedented military effort. “It was a force against a heavily fortified military fortress in the heart of Caracas to bring outlaw dictator Nicolás Maduro to justice,” Trump said, flanked by members of his cabinet.
Trump and other administration officials said Maduro and Flores will be prosecuted in New York on charges of narco-terrorism conspiracy and cocaine importation conspiracy.
In an earlier phone interview with Fox News’ Fox & Friends, Trump said the couple had been transported by helicopter following their capture. “The Iwo Jima — they’re on a ship, but they will be heading into New York,” he said. “They went by helicopter. I am sure they had a nice flight. I am sure they loved it. They killed a lot of people. Remember that.”
Trump later said that with Maduro and Flores in custody, the United States would assume temporary control over Venezuela, though he offered limited details on governance arrangements or a timeline. “We’re going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition,” he said at a press conference.
“We want peace, liberty and justice for the great people of Venezuela, and that includes many from Venezuela [who] are now living in the United States and want to go back to their country. It’s their homeland,” Trump added.
