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Kamla Persad-Bissessar: “[…] Trinidad and Tobago is NOT a participant in any of these ongoing military operations. Trinidad and Tobago continues to maintain peaceful relations with the people of Venezuela.”
Pennelope Beckles: “[This is] a matter of serious concern for Trinidad and Tobago, Caricom, and the wider Caribbean… We place on record our concern for the safety and welfare of the staff and all T&T nationals in Venezuela…”
Civil society groups: “[…] The bombing of a country by another where there is no war is an illegal action and contravenes every aspect of international law and the United Nations Charter… The Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, by siding from day one with Washington’s agenda, without question has been an active and complicit in the division of Caricom and the attempt to delegitimize the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace…”
The following are responses—from the Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister, Opposition Leader, and a coalition of civil society groups—to the capture of Venezuela president Nicolás Maduro and his wife of Cilia Flores by the United States military, on the direction of US president Donald Trump on Saturday 3 January 2026, ostensibly to face charges laid by the US Department of Justice for drug trafficking and money laundering:
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar
Earlier this morning, Saturday 3rd January 2026, the United States commenced military operations within the territory of Venezuela.
Trinidad and Tobago is NOT a participant in any of these ongoing military operations.
Trinidad and Tobago continues to maintain peaceful relations with the people of Venezuela.
Photo: UNC.
Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles
Reports circulating internationally regarding United States military attacks in Caracas, including claims of the capture of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, are deeply troubling.
While some information remains unclear and unconfirmed, any such development in our immediate geographic space is a matter of serious concern for Trinidad and Tobago, Caricom, and the wider Caribbean.
Trinidad and Tobago consistently upheld the principles of respect for sovereignty, non-interference, and the peaceful resolution of disputes under the People’s National Movement.
The PNM reaffirms our party’s firm commitment to our country and all countries maintaining the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace, and we caution against actions that may further destabilise the region and endanger civilian lives.
Maduro, in power since 2013, and his wife were seized by US military forces in Caracas on 3 January 2026.
Photo: Federico Parra / AFP.
We call on all parties involved to exercise restraint, respect international law, and pursue dialogue and diplomatic solutions. The protection and preservation of human life must remain paramount.
We have taken note of the Prime Minister’s three-line statement this morning which made no reference to the fact that Trinidad and Tobago has an embassy with staff in Caracas. We place on record our concern for the safety and welfare of the staff and all T&T nationals in Venezuela.
At this critical time we pray for peace to be restored, for calm to prevail, and for the safety and well-being of all those affected.
(via Western Journal.)
MSJ political leader David Abdulah on behalf of T&T civil society organisations
Our Fellow Trinbagonians,
For some time now we have been informing, educating and warning that the US military deployment was never about fighting a war against drug traffickers but about aggression against the government of Venezuela. We said that the US intentions were regime change.
This morning, the US carried out what it intended all along. They bombed various locations in Venezuela and then kidnapped Nicolás Maduro, the president of Venezuela, and his wife.
We unreservedly condemn the actions by the United States. The bombing of a country by another where there is no war is an illegal action and contravenes every aspect of international law and the United Nations Charter. This was a gross violation of the sovereignty of a nation.
There is no other way to describe it but as an act of imperialism—the use of military force to effect the agenda of maintaining hegemony—of power and control by the US over the region. What Trump has done is to say to the entire Latin America and the Caribbean that whatever he wants he will get by force if necessary.
It is not just the act of a bully, it is thuggery. It was an international crime!
It is precisely for this reason that Caricom in its wisdom had from the very beginning recognised that for us to maintain our sovereignty in the face of the power of the US and other colonial countries, we needed to advance the principle that the Caribbean must be a Zone of Peace.
That principle communicated to those that have military might that they must not use that might in our region; that they must not start a war; that they must not engage in military aggression and that any disputes must be settled by diplomacy and negotiation.
Now that the US has shattered the region as a Zone of Peace, not only has the sovereignty of Venezuela been breached, but the sovereignty of each and every Caribbean nation and of all in Latin America is now under threat and severely undermined.
In this regard, the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, by siding from day one with Washington’s agenda without question, has been an active and complicit in the division of Caricom and the attempt to delegitimize the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace.
This has facilitated the US in its actions.
The Prime Minister must also be held accountable for giving approval for the US military radar to be installed in Tobago and for US military aircraft to use our airports. We must be told whether these were used in the attacks against Venezuela.
Caine, the chairman of USA’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, is America’s highest-ranking military officer.
Photo: UNC.
The government has become a lackey of US imperialism and no amount of ole talk about our being a friend of the Venezuelan people or denials about being involved in today’s actions by the US can erase that fact.
The PM must also now admit that she lied to the people of Trinidad and Tobago about the US actions being about narco-trafficking and so much more.
We, the People, must now demonstrate that we stand for Peace; that we will defend our sovereignty even if the government does not; and that we oppose the US military attacks on Venezuela.
We therefore invite everyone to join us tomorrow—Sunday 4th January—at 10.30am on Victoria Avenue outside the Venezuelan Embassy, as we declare our solidarity with the Bolivarian Revolution, the Venezuelan people and in defense of the sovereignty and dignity of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and of Latin America and the Caribbean.
We are the below listed civil society organisations:
- All Mansions of Rastafari;
- Concerned Muslims of Trinidad and Tobago;
- The Emancipation Support Committee;
- Fishermen and Friends of the Sea;
- Ifa/Orisa Council of Trinidad and Tobago;
- Movement for Social Justice;
- Network of NGOs for the Advancement of Women;
- Trinidad and Tobago Scrap Iron Dealers Association;
- Trinbago for Palestine;
- Warao Nation of Trinidad and Tobago.
Photo: Boereport.
The Republic of Venezuela
The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela rejects, repudiates, and denounces before the international community the extremely grave military aggression perpetrated by the current Government of the United States of America against Venezuelan territory and population in the civilian and military locations of the city of Caracas, capital of the Republic, and the states of Miranda, Aragua, and La Guaira.
This act constitutes a flagrant violation of the United Nations Charter, particularly its Articles 1 and 2, which enshrine respect for sovereignty, the legal equality of states, and the prohibition on the use of force.
Such aggression threatens international peace and stability, specifically that of Latin America and the Caribbean, and places the lives of millions of people in grave danger.
Editor’s Note: The Venezuela Government stated it is compiling information about dead and injured people. There were no reported casualties among US forces.
Click HERE for more on response from international community.
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Our pm is a master of deceit, deception and plain old dishonesty. She has used it to great effects against the people of this country and is now is directing this ploy towards the people of Venezuela by declaring that relations remain intact. She has been full throated in her support for the u.s. actions and has done her part in facilitating key activities in the lead up to the actions that have been carried out. She must take responsibility for any fallouts that might come our way.