Updates: ‘Don’t need international law,’ Trump says after Maduro abduction

Thank you for joining us.

For more of our coverage, read our analysis about the abduction of Maduro and how its framing as a US law enforcement operation does not supersede international law.

Catch up on Trump’s latest statements about how he envisions the US role in Venezuela here.

Or dive into this article to learn about Thursday’s vote in the Senate, which advanced a war powers resolution to rein in Trump’s military actions.

We will be closing this live page soon. Here is a recap of today’s events:

• The US Senate passed a war powers resolution to curb Trump’s ability to attack Venezuela again without congressional authorisation. The bill, which will likely be vetoed by the US president if the House of Representatives passes it, is seen as largely symbolic.
• Trump voiced disregard for international law in an interview with The New York Times, saying that only his “own morality” can stop his aggressive foreign policy.
• The White House dismissed reports that US intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard, who has a history of opposing military interventions, was left out of the planning for Maduro’s abduction.
• French President Emmanuel Macron said the US is “gradually turning away from some of its allies and breaking free from international rules”.
• Russia’s Foreign Ministry called the US seizure the Marinera oil tanker after it left Venezuela a “gross violation” of maritime law.

Panama’s maritime authority has said it cancelled the flag of one of two oil tankers seized by the US military yesterday.

It said the flag of the M Sophia was terminated on ⁠January 23, 2025. The tanker was seized in the Caribbean Sea and has been described as “stateless”.

On Wednesday, the US also seized the Russian-flagged Marinera tanker, formerly known as the Bella-1, in the northern Atlantic Ocean after a weeks-long pursuit.

As we reported earlier, Russia has decried the takeover of that tanker, calling it a “gross violation” of maritime law.

Pele Broberg – the leader of Naleraq, the largest opposition party in Greenland and a prominent pro-independence voice – has told the Reuters news agency that the island should be directly talking with the US.

The statement came as both the Danish ambassador and Greenland’s representative in the US met with US lawmakers in Washington, DC.

Denmark is also set to hold discussions with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio next week about Trump’s latest push to acquire the island.

“We encourage our current [Greenlandic] government actually to have a dialogue with the US government without Denmark,” he said.

He said Denmark is “antagonising both Greenland and the US with their mediation”.

Greenland is an autonomous territory of Denmark, although several Greenlandic political parties support independence.

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The US president warns Iran once again that Washington would intervene in that country’s affairs if Iranian security forces kill antigovernment protesters.

“They’re doing very poorly. And I have let them know that if they start killing people — which they tend to do during their riots, they have lots of riots — if they do it, we’re going to hit them very hard,” Trump said.

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As a Democratic congresswoman, Tulsi Gabbard built a reputation as one of the most vocal anti-interventionist politicians in Washington.

So when the US abducted Maduro, Gabbard’s long history of warning against regime change in Venezuela received renewed attention.

But the White House has come to the defence of the former Democrat, who know serves as director of national intelligence, amid reports that she was cut out of the decision-making process on Venezuela.

White House spokesperson Steven Cheung said Trump has “full confidence” in Gabbard. “She’s doing a fantastic job,” he wrote on social media.

The US president says only his “own morality” can deter his global ambitions after the abduction of Maduro.

“My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me,” Trump told The New York Times.

“I don’t need international law. I’m not looking to hurt people.”

Spain’s foreign ministry said Venezuela has freed five of its nationals.

The statement came shortly after the leader of Venezuela’s National Assembly, Jorge Rodriguez, said the country was releasing a “large number” of prisoners, in what he called a “unilateral gesture”.

Some observers have seen the release as a concession to the administration of US President Donald, which has pledged to assert influence over Venezuela’s government in the wake of Maduro’s abduction.

Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that the five Spanish citizens had been held for more than a year in Venezuela.

Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares also told Spain’s public radio RNE that they included prominent Spanish-Venezuelan activist Rocio San Miguel.

The US vice president says that, if Europe does not seriously address the US security concerns over Greenland, Washington “is going to have to do something about it”.

Vance told reporters that US adversaries “have shown a lot of interest” in the Danish territory, though he did not elaborate.

The US already has a military base and missile defence systems in Greenland, and Denmark is a NATO ally of Washington.

“I guess my advice to European leaders and anybody else would be to take the president of the United States seriously,” Vance said.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham argued that, as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, the US president should have sole authority over military action.

His remarks come after the Senate voted to curb Trump’s ability to strike Venezuela again.

“Today’s vote in the US Senate on the Venezuela War Powers Resolution was a gift to our enemies, will encourage more bad behavior in Venezuela and it is an unconstitutional attempt to restrict the power of the Commander in Chief,” Graham wrote on the social media platform X.

“Throughout my political career I have been consistent on the idea that under the U.S. Constitution, there is only one Commander in Chief and that is the President. I’ve always rejected the idea that the US Constitution allows Congress to replace the President’s judgement as Commander in Chief in matters of military force.”

The US Constitution only grants Congress the power to declare war.

The Lebanese group’s parliamentary bloc, Loyalty to the Resistance, says the US “kidnapped” Maduro and his wife and “fabricated charges” against them to gain control of Venezuela’s natural resources.

The bloc added in a statement that the US actions threaten the “fundamental rights upon which international order is based” and could lead to a “return to the dark ages of human history”.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said the largest US oil companies are likely to move more slowly to develop operations in Venezuela, with smaller companies and exploratory drillers, known as “wildcatters”, poised to move in first.

The Trump administration has long said US oil companies would be clamouring to access Venezuela’s vast natural reserves, but analysts say many will be wary of high upfront costs and the continued uncertainty surrounding the direction of the country.

Bessent, speaking to ⁠the Economic Club of Minnesota, added that the Treasury’s role will be to remove sanctions on various entities in Venezuela, while imposing new sanctions ‌on others.

US Vice President JD Vance has denied that he and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard were left out of the planning for the US military abduction of Maduro.

Vance has long been a champion of Trump’s “America First” vision, and he has supported Trump’s campaign promises to end US intervention abroad. Gabbard, a former Democrat, had previously spoken out against US efforts to topple Maduro, but she has since come out in support of the operation.

Vance said it was “false” that the pair were sidelined.

“I’m going to be as involved as the president wants me to be,” Vance said. “So far, that’s been very involved, and I’ll keep on doing that, so long as the president asks me.”

The top Republican and Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee have met with Denmark’s ambassador to the US, Jesper Moller Sorensen, to discuss Greenland.

Senator Roger Wicker maintained that Denmark was open to selling Greenland: “That’s their prerogative and their right,” the Republican said.

The head of Greenland representation, Jacob Isbosethsen, pushed back on the characterisation.

“Greenland is not for sale,” Isbosethsen told reporters.

Josh Hawley’s vote to advance the war powers resolution in the Senate today was widely seen as a surprise.

In a post on X, Hawley briefly explained his vote, indicating he would likely support the resolution’s final passage.

“With regard to Venezuela, my read of the Constitution is that if the President feels the need to put boots on the ground there in the future, Congress would need to vote on it,” he said.

“That’s why I voted yes on this morning’s Senate resolution.”

The Trump administration has not ruled out further troop deployments to Venezuela in the wake of Maduro’s abduction.

US officials have discussed sending lump-sum payments to Greenlanders to win support for Greenland’s secession from Denmark, Reuters news agency reported, citing four sources familiar with the situation.

While the exact dollar figure and logistics of any payment remained unclear, US officials, including White House aides, discussed figures ranging from $10,000 to $100,000 per person, two sources said.

The Trump administration has said it is trying to acquire Greenland, either through a purchase or other means. It has not ruled out using the military.

Greenland is an autonomous territory of Denmark.

While incremental, the Senate’s progress on the war powers resolution today is a significant step, observers have sought to underscore.

Cavan Kharrazian, senior policy director for the Demand Progress advocacy group, called the vote “a rare ray of good news for the nation and our Constitution”.

“With this historic, bipartisan vote to prevent further war in Venezuela, Congress has begun the long-overdue work of reasserting its constitutional role in decisions of war and peace,” Kharrazian said in a statement.

Tori Bateman, director of advocacy at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, said in a statement that the “change in Republican votes from prior War Power Resolutions attempts is evidence of increasing Congressional frustration with the Trump Administration’s use of force”.

Bateman noted that the vote was a “political blow to Trump’s hostilities in Venezuela, and shows that there are still at least some on the right that are in line with their constituencies, which don’t want to see U.S.-led regime change or involvement in more endless wars”.