The acting president of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, responded this Tuesday with a message filled with political defiance and personal appeals to faith, amid the highest escalation of tension with the United States in years.
"In my personal opinion, those who threaten me, I say this: my fate is decided only by God," he stated during the inauguration of the Agrifood, Fisheries, Community, and Industrial General Staff, in a context marked by the U.S. military attack in Caracas and several states across the country, as well as the capture of the ruler Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
According to the report by the agency Venezuela News, Rodríguez emphasized that her administration will not be intimidated by external pressures and urged the need to maintain the functionality of the State and territorial peace in a situation she described as critical.
The leader further hardened her rhetoric by asserting that “there is no external agent governing Venezuela,” a phrase she repeated in the televised message reported by CNN en Español.
"We are here, governing alongside the people. The Government of Venezuela leads our country, no one else," he stated in direct response to comments made by U.S. President Donald Trump, who claimed that part of his administration would coordinate a political transition in the South American country.
Rodríguez denounced what he described as a “terrible military aggression” by Washington and labeled the “kidnapping” of Maduro and Flores as illegal. Both are currently being prosecuted in the United States, where they pleaded not guilty.
Trump has publicly warned that the acting president could pay "a very high price, likely greater than that of Maduro," if she does not cooperate with his government's plans.
Despite the confrontational tone, Rodríguez left a door open for dialogue. In her first message as acting president, she invited the United States to "work together" and advocated for a relationship based on respect, peace, and mutual understanding, "not war," as noted by CNN.
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