Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro denounced the United States government's presence in the Caribbean as an effort to take over and plunder Venezuelan oil, according to a report shared during the 30-minute reporting window ending at 2:16 a.m. UTC on January 2, 2026. Maduro made the statement amid ongoing U.S. military pressure, as previously reported by AFP in an interview excerpt posted on X by @AZ_Intel_ just before the window at 1:45 a.m. UTC, where he offered cooperation on drug trafficking and oil despite tensions. This follows Maduro's denial earlier on January 2 of a second phone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump, confirming only a single 10-minute call on November 21, 2025, per an interview excerpt shared on X by @madeleintlSUR.
