The U.S. Navy’s Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group, including the flagship USS Gerald R. Ford, USS Winston S. Churchill, USS Mahan and USS Bainbridge, sail towards the Caribbean Sea under F/A-18E/F Super Hornets and a U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress, in the Atlantic Ocean November 13, 2025. (U.S. Navy/Petty Officer 3rd Class Gladjimi Balisage/Handout via Reuters)
WASHINGTON--President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the United States may open talks with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who faces escalating pressure from Washington amid a massive U.S. military buildup in the Caribbean.
It was one of the first signs of a possible path toward defusing an increasingly tense situation in the region as the U.S. wages a campaign of deadly strikes against suspected drug trafficking boats off the Venezuelan coast and in the eastern Pacific Ocean.
"We may be having some discussions with Maduro, and we'll see how that turns out," Trump told reporters on Sunday in West Palm Beach, Florida, before getting on a flight back to Washington. "They would like to talk."
Trump offered no further details about the possibility of talks with Maduro, whom the U.S. has accused of ties to the illegal drug trade, which Maduro denies.Senior Trump administration officials held three meetings at the White House last week to discuss options for possible military operations against Venezuela, including land strikes inside the country, officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Trump said on Friday that he "sort of made up my mind" on Venezuela, suggesting that a decision could come soon.The Venezuelan communications ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trump's latest remarks.
Earlier on Sunday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. would designate an alleged drug organization, Cartel de los Soles, as a "foreign terrorist organization," which makes it a crime for anyone in the U.S. to provide material support to the group.U.S. officials have accused Cartel de los Soles of working with the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, which Washington previously designated a foreign terrorist organization, to send illegal narcotics to the U.S.The Trump administration has alleged that Maduro leads Cartel de Los Soles, which Maduro also denies.
Asked if Rubio's announcement means the U.S. could strike Maduro's assets and infrastructure in Venezuela, Trump said: "It allows us to do that, but we haven't said we're going to do that."
Asked what it means that Maduro was interested in talking, Trump, who had called off diplomatic engagement with Venezuela in early October, said he didn't know, but added: "I talk to anybody."
Trump suggested, however, that he would keep up the pressure on Maduro, who has been in power since 2013 and is not recognized by the U.S. as Venezuela's legitimate president."We're stopping drug dealers and drugs from coming into our country," Trump said.
