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U.S. President Donald Trump made remarks on the 6th concerning the operation to capture and extradite Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, stating, “We have once again shown that the United States possesses the most powerful military in the world,” and added, “It was a tactically impressive move, and although we had no casualties, the other side lost many lives.” Trump mentioned, “Unfortunately, it was primarily Cuban soldiers who perished,” and according to joint statements from the Venezuelan and Cuban governments, the official number of deaths from the operation was at least 56. AP reported, “While the exact figure is still unverified, many Venezuelan civilians also lost their lives.” At the time of the U.S. military action, a large number of Cuban soldiers and police officers were present in the region.

Trump delivered these comments during a speech at the Republican House members’ gathering at the Trump-Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., where he said, “A significant number of troops were sent out, but it was unexpected,” and “We had no losses.” He noted that the Venezuelan side had foreseen the U.S. military’s surprise action but stressed, “The operation was truly impressive,” and “The whole country experienced a blackout.” This demonstrated how the mission’s success was supported by a power failure resulting from “particular technical skills” just prior to the invasion. More than 150 air resources were used for the operation, and apart from one helicopter being hit during the mission, there were no other major issues.

Concerning Maduro, who had appeared in court in New York the day before, Trump labeled him a “brutal figure,” saying, “He tried to copy my dance but was brutal and killed millions.” He further stated, “There were torture rooms in the center of Caracas, and although they are now shut down, they tortured individuals.” Trump’s mention of Maduro’s “dance” seems to be a critique of Maduro’s attempt to mock the U.S. by organizing an anti-American rally and dancing on location while U.S. forces carried out military exercises in the Caribbean, increasing tensions prior to his arrest. Trump also voiced frustration with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who feigned criticism of Maduro’s arrest, calling him a “bad person.” It was reported that on the 7th, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine would present updates to Congress.

Meanwhile, on the same day, Trump said, “I will meet with oil companies,” which was seen as an effort to modernize Venezuela’s aging oil infrastructure for the benefit of U.S. economic and energy security. He remarked, “As you know, this is about oil drilling,” and “This will cause the actual price of oil to drop significantly.” Although Trump did not name the specific oil companies he would meet, it was reported that Energy Secretary Chris Wright would be meeting with executives from major oil companies, including Chevron, this week. Morning Joe, host of MSNBC’s morning news show, disclosed that during a call with Trump the day before, Trump said, “The biggest difference between the Iraq War and this situation is oil,” and “Bush didn’t take the oil, but we will take the oil.”