US President Donald Trump has dismissed suggestions that Washington could carry out a dramatic operation against Russian President Vladimir Putin similar to the recent one that led to the capture of former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. Speaking to reporters on Friday, Trump said such a move would be unnecessary, even as he expressed deep disappointment over the prolonged war in Ukraine. “I don’t think it’s going to be necessary,” Trump said when asked about remarks from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hinting that Putin could be next after Maduro. “I think we’re going to have and always had a great relationship with him.”
‘Very disappointed; over ongoing Ukraine conflict
Trump, addressing a gathering of senior US oil and gas executives, said he had expected the Ukraine war to end far sooner. Referring to Russia’s invasion that began in 2022, he said the continued bloodshed was a major regret.
“I settled eight wars. I thought this would be somewhere in the middle, maybe even one of the easier ones,” Trump said, adding that the human cost of the conflict weighed heavily on him.
He cited recent casualty figures to underline the scale of losses. “Last month alone, 31,000 people were killed many of them Russian soldiers. The Russian economy is suffering. I think we’ll eventually get this settled, but I wish it had happened sooner,” he said.
Putin under ICC warrant
Diplomatic efforts to end the war remain fraught, with Russian President Vladimir Putin facing an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court in The Hague over alleged war crimes in Ukraine. The warrant has further complicated any direct engagement between Moscow and Western capitals.
Zelenskyy, reacting to the Maduro episode last week, made an indirect reference to Putin, suggesting that if this is how a “dictator” must be handled, then Washington “knows what to do next.” Trump, however, made it clear he would not pursue such a course.
Maduro’s capture
Trump’s comments come days after a surprise US military operation in Caracas saw Nicolas Maduro seized in a pre-dawn raid and flown to the United States to face charges including drug trafficking. According to US accounts, the operation involved overnight airstrikes followed by an elite Delta Force assault on Maduro’s residence.
Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were taken into custody and transported via a US military base before being flown to New York aboard an American naval vessel. The unprecedented action stunned governments worldwide and emboldened some US allies.
Following Maduro’s removal, Vice President Delcy Rodriguez assumed the presidency, condemning the US action as “illegal and illegitimate.” Despite the sharp rhetoric, Washington and Caracas have begun tentative talks to restore diplomatic ties. US diplomats are already on the ground in Venezuela to assess reopening the American embassy.
