US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife had been extracted by helicopter to a ship, and would be taken to New York to face federal charges.
“They’re on a ship, but they’ll be heading into New York. The helicopters took them out,” Trump told Fox News in a telephone interview.
Trump clarified that Maduro and his wife are aboard the USS Iwo Jima and heading to New York.
“Yes, the Iwo Jima, they’re on a ship,” Trump said in a phone interview with Fox News Saturday morning. “They’ll be heading into New York. The helicopters took them out, and they went by helicopter in a nice flight — I’m sure they loved it. But they’ve, they’ve killed a lot of people, remember that.”
Asked about the off-ramps he provided to Maduro, Trump said, “Well, basically I said, you have to give up. You have to surrender.”
Meanwhile, Trump posted a picture of Maduro in custody on a US naval ship and wearing both a blindfold and handcuffs. “Nicolas Maduro on board the USS Iwo Jima,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Nicolas Maduro on board the USS Iwo Jima. pic.twitter.com/omF2UpDJhA
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) January 3, 2026
US Vice President JD Vance said that Venezuela ignored offers to reach an agreement, adding that captured leader Nicolas Maduro was the “newest person to find out that President Trump means what he says.”
“The president offered multiple off-ramps, but was very clear throughout this process: the drug trafficking must stop, and the stolen oil must be returned to the United States,” Vance said in a post on X.
Vance also doubled down on the US justification that Maduro was a fugitive from US law, saying: “You don’t get to avoid justice for drug trafficking in the United States because you live in a palace in Caracas.”
USS Iwo Jima
The USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7) carries its name like a badge of honor.
It’s named for the savage 1945 Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II, where U.S. Marines fought their way up Mount Suribachi and planted the flag, which became one of the most famous photographs ever taken.
This Wasp-class amphibious assault ship is actually the second Navy vessel to bear that name; the first was a smaller helicopter carrier (LPH-2) that saw heavy service in Vietnam before being retired in the early 1990s.
Right now, as of early January 2026, the Iwo Jima is operating in the Caribbean Sea, transferring Maduro to New York.
She’s the centerpiece of her Amphibious Ready Group, which usually sails with San Antonio-class transport docks like the USS San Antonio and USS Fort Lauderdale.
On board the Iwo Jima are elements of the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, approximately 2,000 Marines backed by a variety of military aircraft, including MV-22B Ospreys for fast troop movement, CH-53E Super Stallion heavy-lift helicopters, AH-1Z attack choppers, etc.
They have been conducting live-fire exercises, maritime patrols, and amphibious drills across the region since at least late summer 2025. Recent satellite images and official US Navy have confirmed deployment near Venezuelan waters.
Officially an LHD (Landing Helicopter Dock), the Iwo Jima belongs to the eight-ship Wasp class, with seven still active and one lost to a devastating fire years ago.
These ships function like mini aircraft carriers, with a large, full-length flight deck that lets them launch and recover fixed-wing vertical-takeoff aircraft such as the AV-8B Harrier II and the newer F-35B, along with a heavy lineup of helicopters.
Below decks, the well deck handles landing craft—hovercraft like the LCAC or traditional boats—to rush troops, armored vehicles, and supplies ashore. It’s built to move, sustain, and support a full Marine Expeditionary Unit in extended operations, doubling as a floating command center when needed.
The ship hit the water in February 2000 and joined the fleet in June 2001. She’s about 844 feet (257 meters) long, displaces roughly 40,000 tons fully loaded, and combines troop transport, heavy aviation ops, and command facilities into one versatile package, perfect for everything from beach assaults to humanitarian missions.
Her current embarked air wing, tied to the reinforced Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 263 (VMM-263 Reinforced), includes:
- AV-8B Harrier II+ attack jets from VMM-263, with some rigged for AIM-120C-7 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles to give them real defensive bite.
- CH-53E Super Stallion and MH-60S/R Seahawk helicopters for heavy lift and utility work.
- MV-22B Osprey tiltrotors for rapid troop insertion and support.
In short, Iwo Jima is part of a serious show of force in a tense neighborhood that will get much deserved limelight with its latest “acts”.
Meanwhile, Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Corina Machado said that the “hour of freedom” had arrived for her country.
“Venezuelans, the HOUR OF FREEDOM has arrived!” she posted on social media.
“Today we are ready to enforce our mandate and take power. Let us remain vigilant, active, and organized until the Democratic Transition is realized. A transition that needs ALL of us,” she said on Saturday.
“We are going to restore order,” she stated, adding that Gonzalez Urrutia must now be “recognized as Commander in Chief of the National Armed Forces by all officers and soldiers.”
Machado was barred from running in the 2024 election and was replaced on the ticket by Gonzalez Urrutia, a little-known diplomat. She has been hailed for her fight for democracy, but also criticized for aligning herself with Trump.
She was awarded the Nobel Prize for “her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy.”
Gonzalez Urrutia wrote on X on Saturday that “these are decisive hours, know that we are ready for the great operation of the reconstruction of our nation.”
By: ET Online Desk with AFP Inputs
