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US strikes on Venezuela

Trump praises Maduro's decision to surrender

US special forces acted "very violently", Donald Trump said

WASHINGTON, January 5. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump said he believes Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro's decision to voluntarily surrender was the right one, as US special forces acted "very violently" during the operation.

"Maduro gave up immediately. He raised his hands, he gave up. And he did the right thing," Trump said aboard his plane en route to Washington from West Palm Beach, Florida, where he spent the Christmas and New Year holidays at his Mar-a-Lago estate.

"We were so effective, and it was so fast and violent. It was very violent," the US leader added. Reporters asked him to describe the "most violent moment" of the operation. "I don't want to tell you that," the US president replied. Trump had previously mentioned that many of the Cuban citizens guarding the Venezuelan leader were killed during the operation.

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United States Venezuela Donald Trump

US strikes on Venezuela

UN Security Council should prevent collapse of international law — expert

American economist and public policy analyst Jeffrey Sachs noted that the UN Charter prohibits the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any state

Ukraine’s terrorist attacks against Russia could be seen as ‘suicide’ for Kiev — Ritter

Commenting on the Ukrainian armed forces' attempt to attack Russian President Vladimir Putin's state residence, Former US intelligence officer and ex-UN inspector suggested that the CIA may have been involved in the operation

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At least 40 people die after US attack on Venezuela — media

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto said on January 3 that the United States had attacked civilian and military facilities in Caracas

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Jens-Frederik Nielsen made his statements amid developments in Venezuela and a potential threat for Greenland from the United States

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16 of them were destroyed over the Belgorod Region

Air defenses down 55 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions during three hours

31 of them were destroyed over the Bryansk Region

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"We resemble Europe in 1936 more than we do the post-War West," Michael Brenner, former Director of the International Relations & Global Studies Program at the University of Texas said

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The White House "now treats control over the Western Hemisphere as a core strategic priority - not merely as foreign policy, but as regime preservation," Jozef Schutzman said

Japan’s prime minister avoids criticizing US actions in Venezuela, Maduro’s capture

Sanae Takaichi emphasized the importance of the "swift restoration of democracy and stabilization of the situation" in Venezuela

FACTBOX: What we know about attack on Venezuela’s capital

US forces attacked civilian and military facilities in Caracas, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto said

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The European Commission also declined to comment on whether it condemns civilian deaths following US actions

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"We resolutely condemn the US military aggression against Venezuela in violation of all international law norms," Vasily Nebenzya emphasized

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Pro-Palestine activists smash up factory in UK over weapons supplies to Israel

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Medvedev bashes US general’s idiotic remarks about Kaliningrad’s air defenses

The Russian PM commented on media reports citing the commander of the US Air Forces in Europe on Pentagon's plans to ‘crack’ the air defenses in the Kaliningrad Region in case of Russia's aggression

US triumph in Venezuela could turn into disaster — Russian senator

Alexey Pushkov opined that by attacking Venezuela and capturing its president, the US violated all norms, "once again stirring up the whole world, returning it to the savage imperialism of the 19th century"

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Public opinion polls in the United States show that there are many friends of Russia in the USA, Putin said

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The phone conversation was held at Israel’s initiative

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According to Antonio Guterres, he is concerned that "it may set for how relations between and among states are conducted"

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John Mark Dougan warned that such actions lead to the destabilization of the entire international system

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The US leader said that "they're going to rebuild the infrastructure"

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Donald Tusk’s remarks followed the recent US strike on Venezuela, as well as statements by US President Donald Trump about Washington’s territorial claims on Greenland, which is part of Denmark

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Spartak Moscow FC announces appointment of Spain’s Carcedo as head coach

Juan Carcedo will assume the position of head coach on January 8 under a contract valid until the summer of 2028

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The Ukrainian army lost roughly 1,300 troops in battles with Russian forces in all the frontline areas over the past 24 hours, according to the latest data on the special military operation in Ukraine released by Russia’s Defense Ministry

Erdogan discussed Venezuela, Gaza, bilateral relations with Trump

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Slovak PM reaffirms opposition to EU’s anti-Russia policies

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Press review: Russia may revise Ukraine talks post attack and China launches Taiwan drills

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Gazprom Neft posts 5.3% rise in hydrocarbons production for Q1, 1.8% increase in refining

Refining increased to 10.6 mln tons

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According to the source, Maduro's reaction made it clear that he had no intention of seriously considering Washington's proposals

EU issues statement on Venezuela not supported by Hungary — foreign policy service

According to the statement, the principles of international law must be upheld by Venezuela, as the EU argued that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro lacked "democratic legitimacy"

Trump makes no secret that true US purpose is to seize Venezuelan oil — Medvedev

According to him, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has repeatedly said that the current US administration’s true purpose is to grab their oil and other fossils

Ukrainian Security Service head submits his resignation letter — lawmaker

A number of Ukrainian military leaders expressed their dissatisfaction with such plans

Thirty-two Cubans killed during US operation to capture Maduro — president

A two-day mourning period was announced on the island

Poland’s ex-President Walesa calls on West not to be limited by liberating Ukraine

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Russia to make every effort to prevent OPCW from becoming Western tool — envoy

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Trump says US now effectively runs Venezuela

Donald Trump explained that he had not personally been in contact with Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez, who is acting as head of state, but noted that "she is cooperating" with the US

Finnish politician says European Commission president building ‘Fourth Reich’

Armando Mema added that the EU, in its attempt to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia, is losing political weight

US will find it hard to bring oil companies back to Venezuela — expert

American energy expert Tom Kloza noted that it will be difficult due to the country's peculiarities and the situation on world markets

Restoring peak oil production in Venezuela could take decades — US expert

Tom Kloza opined that it might be relatively easy with a friendly administration to get back to two million barrels per day but that would happen later this decade"

UN trying to get information on the ground about those killed in Venezuela — spokesperson

This was reported by the UN chief’s spokesperson Stephane Dujarric at a news briefing

Putin welcomes return of flag, anthem to Russian Paralympians at int'l competitions

The Russian president noted that throughout all these years, the Russian Paralympic Committee has been fulfilling an important, socially significant mission, uniting thousands of people with health limitations through its noble goals, introducing them to adaptive physical culture and sports, and helping them fully reveal their talents and demonstrate strong character and an indomitable will

Dmitriev calls Europeans 'poor' after von der Leyen’s promise

"President of the European Commission promises to work even harder on Western civilization’s suicide in 2026," Russian Direct Investment Fund Kirill Dmitriev said

Venezuela achieved victory at UN Security Council’s meeting — foreign minister

The international community officially recognized that the attack made on January 3 was the act contradicting the international law, Yvan Gil Pinto emphasized

Japan, Turkey, Canada, South Korea keen to join EU’s scheme to fund defense investment

EC Spokesperson Thomas Regnier said the commission will "now look into this request"

Venezuela asks to reopen US embassy in Caracas — Trump

Washington is thinking about it, the US leader said

China backs emergency UN Security Council meeting on US operation in Venezuela

Lin Jian added that countries have the full right to choose their own partners for cooperation and external powers should not interfere in their internal affairs under any pretext

LazerBuzz laser system hits FPV drone at 1 km range

According to LazerBuzz representatives, during testing, the system completely damaged the battery and other components of an FPV drone

Russia bans entry to 28 Canadian supporters of neo-Nazism, MFA announces

This was done in response to unlawful anti-Russian entry restrictions earlier announced by Ottawa

Gazprom delivers 40.8 mln cubic meters of natural gas to Europe via Ukraine

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Trump praises Maduro's decision to surrender

US special forces acted "very violently", Donald Trump said

Kazakhstan’s 2022 unrest overseen by ‘revolution specialists’ — president

The instigators of the unrest "took advantage of the government’s decision to raise fuel prices and provoked mass demonstrations," Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said

Russian Foreign Ministry condemns US armed aggression against Venezuela

The ministry emphasized that, under the current circumstances, "it is crucial, above all, to prevent further escalation and to focus on finding a way out of the situation through dialogue"