Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Monday pledged his “absolute loyalty” to the Venezuelan people as tensions continue to rise with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Speaking outside the presidential palace surrounded by senior officials on Monday (1 December), Maduro addressed supporters gathered for a rally organised to swear in new local leaders of the ruling PSUV socialist party.
“Just as I swore before the body of our commander Chávez, before saying farewell to him, absolute loyalty at the cost of my own life and peace, I now swear to you absolute loyalty beyond this life, through this beautiful and heroic story we are living,” Maduro declared, referring to his late predecessor Hugo Chávez.
“Be certain that I will never fail you — never, ever, never.”
Maduro was joined by his wife, Cilia Flores, and Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, who wore a red baseball cap embroidered with the slogan “doubt is betrayal,” along with other senior officials.
Relations between Caracas and Washington have grown increasingly strained in recent months, following U.S. strikes on alleged drug-smuggling vessels in the Caribbean, threats by Trump to expand military operations onto Venezuelan soil, and the designation of the Cartel de los Soles which the U.S. claims includes Maduro as a foreign terrorist organisation. Maduro and his government have always denied all criminal accusations.
Maduro told Trump during the call last month that he was willing to leave Venezuela provided he and his family members had full legal amnesty, including the removal of all U.S. sanctions and the end of a flagship case he faces before the International Criminal Court, three of the sources said.
He also requested removal of sanctions for more than a 100 Venezuelan government officials, many accused by the U.S. of human rights abuses, drug trafficking or corruption, according to the three people.
Maduro asked that Vice President Delcy Rodriguez run an interim government ahead of new elections, according to two of the sources.
Trump rejected most of his requests on the call, which lasted less than 15 minutes, but told Maduro he had a week to leave Venezuela for the destination of his choice alongside his family members.
That safe passage expired on Friday, prompting Trump to declare on Saturday that Venezuela's airspace was closed, two of the sources said.
It's reported that the sources said on Monday (1 December) that President Trump was set to meet senior advisers to discuss Venezuela, after confirming on Sunday that he had spoken with Maduro in November.
Meanwhile, the Venezuelan National Assembly on Monday postponed an extraordinary session that was due to discuss forming a commission to investigate the recent boat strikes. The Assembly’s press office said the debate was rescheduled for Tuesday, its usual sitting day.
U.S. forces have conducted at least 21 strikes on suspected drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean and Pacific since September, leaving at least 83 people dead.
Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez had announced Monday’s session after meeting relatives of those killed, saying the move was intended to safeguard the families.
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Global oil prices reached a four year high on Monday (9 March), surpassing $119 a barrel, as conflict in the Middle East rumbled on. Meanwhile, the Turkish Military said NATO air defence systems destroyed a missile fired from Iran towards the country.
Global oil prices surpassed $119 a barrel on Monday (9 March, 2026), an almost four year high, as the Middle East conflict rumbled on.
China has urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to resolve their dispute through dialogue after Chinese envoy Yue Xiaoyong met Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, as fighting between the two neighbours entered its eleventh day.
Iranian civilian and military officials have pledged their obedience to the new leader, Ayatollah Seyed Mojtaba Khamenei, with President Masoud Pezeshkian saying his leadership “will herald a new era of dignity and authority for the Iranian nation.”.
Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is a hardline cleric with strong backing from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. His rise signals continuity in Tehran's anti-Western policies.
Trump says the United States "don’t need people that join wars after we’ve already won," targeting his criticism at UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Israel continues to fire missles at strategic sites in Iran and Gulf regions report more strikes from Iran.
Global oil prices surpassed $119 a barrel on Monday (9 March, 2026), an almost four year high, as the Middle East conflict rumbled on.
Iran named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father Ali Khamenei as supreme leader on Monday (9 March), signaling that hardliners remain firmly in charge, as the week-old U.S.-Israeli war with Iran pushed oil above $100 a barrel.
Entry and exit across the state border between Azerbaijan and Iran for all types of cargo vehicles, including those in transit, will resume on 9 March, according to a statement by the Cabinet of Ministers of Azerbaijan.
U.S. President Donald Trump and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke by phone on Sunday as tensions between Washington and Westminster deepened over the conflict involving Iran. The call came less than a day after Trump criticised Britain’s response to U.S. strikes on Iranian targets.
Norwegian police are searching for a suspect after an explosion at the U.S. embassy in Oslo on 8 March caused minor damage but no injuries, in what authorities say may have been a deliberate attack linked to the Middle East crisis.
An explosion damaged a synagogue in the Belgian city of Liège early on Monday (9 March) in what authorities said was an antisemitic attack that caused damage but no injuries.
The Group of Seven (G7) finance ministers will meet on Monday to discuss a global rise in oil prices and a joint release of oil from emergency reserves coordinated by the International Energy Agency, the Financial Times reports.
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