U.S. Coordinates Rescue Operations Amid Ongoing Venezuela Earthquake Aftermath

In early January, Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with President Trump and top U.S. military leaders to coordinate a covert operation that led to the removal of Venezuela’s authoritarian president, Nicolás Maduro.

On Thursday, Rubio explained the United States’ response to a devastating double earthquake that has left many Venezuelans trapped beneath the rubble.

He announced that the United States would provide a “whole‑of‑government response.”

“We are already sending search‑and‑rescue teams from Fairfax County, Virginia, and Los Angeles,” he told reporters. “Additional teams will follow. Their most urgent need at this moment is search‑and‑rescue efforts.”

Because the airport is severely damaged, he noted, “we will rely on the Department of War to deploy assets there,” using the administration’s preferred term for the Defense Department. “We will also provide overhead imagery support.”

Rubio’s comments were designed to reinforce President Trump’s social‑media message that the United States was “ready, willing and able to help.” The statements also emphasized that U.S. interests in Venezuela extend beyond oil, even as Trump has asserted that the United States should claim the nation’s most valuable resource.

In a speech to a conservative religious conference on Friday, Trump referenced the oil, stating, “It was a one‑day war; we hit them so hard. Now we’ve taken out millions of barrels of oil, and we’ve paid for the war many times over.”

The State Department announced the formation of a disaster assistance response team of over 250 personnel, encompassing the three search‑and‑rescue units highlighted by Rubio. Additionally, the administration allocated $50 million to at least six aid organizations and $100 million to a United Nations humanitarian office operating in Venezuela.

Following the dissolution of the U.S. Agency for International Development last year, the administration has turned to State Department offices, which possess only a fraction of that agency’s former resources.

Michael Shifter, a senior fellow at the Washington‑based Inter‑American Dialogue, described the U.S. response to the earthquake as “an opportunity” for the Trump administration.

In the months following Maduro’s capture, Shifter noted, the government led by Delcy Rodríguez—a Maduro ally—has taken limited steps toward expanding political freedoms, such as releasing roughly half of the nation’s political prisoners.

However, most Venezuelans continue to face poor economic conditions, despite high expectations raised in part by Trump, who predicted a boom driven by U.S. investment in the country’s dilapidated oil sector.

Shifter observed, “There is growing concern that the Trump administration’s heavy‑handed approach amounts to plundering and pillaging the country, eroding its sovereignty and national control. Earthquake relief could serve as a chance to demonstrate that the U.S. is interested in more than business and oil.”

Following Maduro’s capture—described by some as an abduction—Trump and Rubio pledged to initiate a gradual transition to democracy. “Ultimately, to achieve a genuine transition, they must hold multiparty, free, and fair elections,” Rubio told a Senate committee this month.

However, the administration has yet to propose a timeline for this transition, and progress has been sluggish. Unlike many previous presidents, Trump seldom champions democracy or human rights, often criticizing past American efforts in these areas.

In a modest development, Rodríguez’s brother, Jorge Rodríguez—who leads Venezuela’s National Assembly—met with former opposition legislator Dinorah Figuera last week to discuss democratic transition. The encounter in Caracas marked the first dialogue between the ruling party and the opposition in at least 18 months.

The State Department issued a statement welcoming the meeting as “a first step toward a thoughtful process to secure a free and open Venezuelan society.” It outlined a transition agenda that would encompass rebuilding democratic institutions, strengthening the national elections oversight body, and guaranteeing free political discourse and participation.

Shifter noted that many observers were “puzzled” by the selection of Figuera as the opposition’s starting point for talks. Venezuela’s opposition leader, María Corina Machado—a popular figure and Nobel Peace Prize laureate who remains in exile—has aspirations to lead the country, which Trump has declined to support.

The Trump administration has begun reestablishing diplomatic and commercial relations with Venezuela, reversing earlier cuts imposed during Trump’s first term.

The United States reopened its embassy in Caracas on March 30. American officials have signed preliminary agreements with Venezuelan oil and mining firms. On April 30, American Airlines launched the first commercial flight between the two nations since Trump terminated such service during his first term.

To cushion the economic impact of the U.S.–Israeli conflict with Iran, the Trump administration has relaxed certain sanctions on Venezuela. In March, the Treasury Department granted a waiver permitting U.S. companies to engage with Venezuela’s national oil company, PDVSA, thereby boosting global oil supplies as prices rose following Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Rubio told senators this month that revenues from Venezuela’s oil sales are being held in a U.S.-controlled bank account and used to pay government employees and acquire medical supplies and equipment.

Rubio also reported that the United States and the United Kingdom removed a small quantity of highly enriched uranium from Venezuela last month, linked to the nation’s defunct nuclear energy program, noting that Venezuela “wanted it out of their country.”

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