TRANSCRIPT
The United States has carried out its most direct military intervention in Latin America in nearly four decades; striking Venezuela, capturing President Nicolas Maduro, and declaring it will temporarily run the country.
(Sound of explosions)
Within hours of the strikes on Caracas, US President Donald Trump confirmed that Mr Maduro had been captured along with his wife, and said his administration would assume control of Venezuela until a transition could be organised.
"So we are going to run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition. And it has to be judicious because that’s what we’re all about. We want peace, liberty and justice for the great people of Venezuela; and that includes many from Venezuela that are now living in the United States and want to go back to their country. It’s their homeland."
He also says the US is taking over Venezuela's oil industry.
"We're going to have our very large United States oil companies, the biggest anywhere in the world, go and spend billions of dollars, fix the badly broken infrastructure, the oil infrastructure, and start making money for the country. And we are ready to stage a second and much larger attack if we need to do so."
The London-based research firm, the Energy Institute says Venezuela holds the world’s largest oil reserves, about 303 billion barrels - that's even more than Saudi Arabia - but much of it is extra-heavy crude that is costly to extract and refine.
In Caracas, Venezuela’s remaining leadership condemned the US operation; and is calling on the public to stay calm, accusing the United States of invasion.
A national emergency has been declared in Venezuela and the armed forces deployed.
Wearing a bulletproof vest to deliver a televised address, Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello appealed directly to Venezuelans not to panic.
"From this beautiful place I ask people to stay calm. Trust in our leadership, trust in our military and political leaders during the situation we are facing. Calm, no one should fall into despair, no one should make things easier to our invading enemy."
With smoke still rising from military bases around the capital, some Venezuelans say they believe the intervention could finally bring political change after years of crisis.
Motorcycle rider Ronald Galuee says many people now see a moment of transition.
"There should be a positive change for all Venezuelans because it has been 28 years of government; and now is the time for transition in this country. Now, we have to wait for these people to speak out and see what they have to say. Everything should happen now and we should get out of this situation."
But others fear the US intervention will only deepen instability and lead to wider conflict inside Venezuela.
Franklin Jimenez, a baker in Caracas, warns that removing Mr Maduro by force could make things worse.
"If they took him away, I think they shouldn’t have done so, because this will create an even worse conflict than the one we have now. And as for the bombings and all that, we have to go out, as they said, we all have to go out into the streets to defend our homeland, to defend ourselves."]]
Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodríguez later appeared on state television, accusing the US of using force to pursue regime change and seize the country’s resources.
She says the strike had been planned under false pretenses.
"We had already warned that an aggression was underway under false excuses and false pretexts, that the masks had fallen, and that it had only one objective: regime change in Venezuela. That regime change would also allow for the seizure of our energy resources, our mineral resources, and our natural resources."
The last time the US carried out a direct military intervention in Latin America was in 1989 - when then president George W. Bush ordered the invasion to capture then-military ruler, Manuel Noriega, who later faced a trial on charges including drug trafficking.
The latest operation in Venezuela has triggered a wave of global condemnation.
China, Russia and Iran all denounced the US action as a violation of Venezuelan sovereignty, warning it sets a dangerous precedent under international law.
President Trump appeared unconcerned, saying those who oppose the US action will soon be buying oil from US companies.
"In terms of China and Russia. Well, Russia, when we get things straightened out. But in terms of other countries that want oil, we're in the oil business. We're going to sell it to them. We're not going to say we're not. In other words, we'll be selling oil, probably in much larger doses, because they couldn't produce very much because their infrastructure was so bad. So, we will be selling large amounts of oil to other countries, many of whom are using it now. But I would say many more will come."
In Brazil, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva says the strikes crossed an unacceptable line.
Cuba and Colombia are also condemning the intervention, while France is calling for a peaceful and democratic transition, as the UN Secretary-General warns of wider regional instability.
Meantime, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is calling on all parties to support dialogue and diplomacy to prevent escalation.
He says Australia has long held concerns about human rights and fundamental freedoms in Venezuela, and will support a peaceful and democratic transition.
A statement from Coalition leader Sussan Ley ((Susan Lee)) welcomed news of Mr Maduro's capture, saying the country has endured years of repression and corruption under him.
Now with Mr Maduro removed and no clear authority in place, analysts warn the biggest risk may lie ahead.
Mark Cancian of the Center for Strategic and International Studies says the United States may have removed a government without a clear plan for what follows.
"It would be quite possible for a new government to exert its authority where the population is - but then be unable to exert that authority in the hinterland. And in the hinterland you have gangs, you have cartels, you have guerillas. So that there’s the possibility of a kind of failed state in the hinterland, even as the government runs the areas that are most populated."
Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are now in New York, where they face US federal charges; including narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine trafficking and weapons offences.
The charges, filed in New York, accuse the couple of leading a criminal enterprise that enriched senior officials and threatened US security - allegations they have long denied.
Whether Venezuela will stabilise under a new transition; or slide into a prolonged internal conflict that even the United States may struggle to contain, remains to be seen.
