Rubio’s statements seemed designed to temper concerns that the assertive action to achieve regime change in Venezuela might lead the U.S. into another prolonged foreign intervention or failed attempt at nation-building.
They stood in contrast to Trump’s broad but vague claims that the U.S. would at least temporarily “run” the oil-rich nation, comments that suggested some sort of governing structure under which Caracas would be controlled by Washington.
Still, Trump reiterated Sunday night that “we’re in charge,” while interim Venezuelan leader Delcy Rodriguez invited the Republican president “to collaborate” in a newly conciliatory stance.
“We’re going to run it, fix it,” he said of Venezuela while aboard Air Force One en route to Washington from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
Hours earlier, Rubio offered a more nuanced take, saying the U.S. would enforce an oil quarantine that was already in place on sanctioned tankers before Maduro was removed from power early Saturday and use that leverage to press policy changes in Venezuela.
“And so that’s the sort of control the president is pointing to when he says that," Rubio said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” "We continue with that quarantine, and we expect to see that there will be changes, not just in the way the oil industry is run for the benefit of the people, but also so that they stop the drug trafficking.”
Rodríguez changes her tone
Venezuela's interim president said she seeks “respectful relations” with the U.S., in a shift from a previously defiant tone.
“We invite the US government to collaborate with us on an agenda of cooperation oriented towards shared development within the framework of international law to strengthen lasting community coexistence,” Rodríguez wrote in an online post.
After the U.S. operation, she called Maduro the country's rightful leader and urged the U.S. to release him, declaring the actions an “atrocity” and saying “history and justice will make the extremists who promoted this armed aggression pay.”
Her conciliatory message came after Trump threatened that she could “pay a very big price” if she didn’t fall in line with U.S. demands.
Trump told reporters Sunday night that Rodríguez is “cooperating” but reiterated the threat from an earlier interview with The Atlantic.
He told reporters on Air Force One that he wanted her to provide “total access” to aspects of the country large and small — from major oil operations to basic infrastructure.
“We need access to the oil and to other things in their country that allow us to rebuild their country,” Trump said.
Venezuela’s Supreme Court ruled Rodríguez would be acting president earlier Sunday.
Cuba, meanwhile, announced that 32 Cuban security officers were killed in the U.S. operation in Venezuela, which Trump acknowledged: “You know, a lot of Cubans were killed yesterday.”
“There was a lot of death on the other side,” Trump said. “No death on our side.”
