Venezuela swears interim leader after Maduro appears in court

Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, was sworn in during a parliamentary session that began with a call for the release from U.S. custody of ousted leader Nicolas Maduro.

Rodriguez, 56, who has served as vice president since 2018, said he was distressed by the “kidnapping” of Maduro and his wife, Celia Flores, who were arrested by U.S. forces overnight on Saturday.

Two hours earlier, in dramatic scenes in a New York court, Maduro insisted he was still Venezuela’s president as he pleaded not guilty to four counts of drug trafficking and terrorism.

Meanwhile, the United States faced sharp criticism from the United Nations, but its ambassador said the world’s largest energy reserves could not be left in the hands of an illegitimate leader who was “fugitive from justice.”

The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting prior to the trial to discuss the situation in Venezuela.

Venezuelan Ambassador Samuel Moncada said his country had been the target of “illegal armed attacks lacking legal justification.”

Mike Waltz, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, justified the attack by describing Maduro as a “so-called illegitimate president.”

Waltz added that the United States conducted a “surgical law enforcement operation” to arrest Maduro.

Maduro was charged with narcoterrorism conspiracy, conspiracy to import cocaine, conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices.

During a court appearance Monday afternoon, a member of the public began shouting in Spanish that Maduro would “pay for what he did.”

Maduro turned to him and replied that he was a “kidnapped president” and a “prisoner of war,” before being escorted in shackles to the backyard door behind his wife.

“I am a good person. I am still the president of my country,” Maduro said during the 30-minute hearing.

Judge Alvin Hellerstein, 92, intervened and told Maduro there would be “a time and a place to deal with all of this.”

Just hours after Saturday’s attack, which saw more than 150 aircraft and 200 U.S. troops enter Venezuela, President Trump pledged that the U.S. would “run” Venezuela until a “safe, appropriate and smart transition” was possible.

He also promised that American oil companies would move to the United States so they could repair infrastructure and “start making money for the country.”

But despite the US president’s claims, Maduro’s allies are still in power.

In comments to the US magazine The Atlantic on Sunday after it became clear that Rodriguez would be sworn in, President Trump warned that she would “do the right thing or you will pay a bigger price than Maduro.”

Prime Minister Rodriguez told a cabinet meeting that his government would cooperate to some extent with the United States, saying, “We ask the U.S. government to work with us on a cooperative agenda oriented toward common development within the framework of international law.”

Thousands of Venezuelans gathered outside the federal legislative palace to support the inauguration of Maduro, his wife and interim President Rodriguez.

Rodriguez told parliament after being sworn in that he did so “painfully” because of the suffering caused by “unlawful military aggression.”

She pledged to ensure peace in the country: “the spiritual tranquility of our people, the economic and social tranquility of our people.”

Congress also heard from Maduro’s son, who expressed support for his parents, saying they would “go back” to Venezuela.

He also offered “unconditional support” to Rodriguez.

The next court hearing in Maduro’s case is scheduled for March 17.