Foreign Secretary expected to address MPs on US operation in Venezuela

Yvette Cooper is expected to lay out the Government’s response to the US capture of Nicolas Maduro in the House of Commons on Monday, a minister has said.

The Foreign Secretary is likely to make a statement to MPs following the American operation in Venezuela over the weekend, which saw the capture of its president, Maduro.

He is due to appear in New York court on Monday after he was indicted alongside his wife on charges of “narco-terrorism”.

Home Office minister Mike Tapp, who revealed plans for the statement, was reluctant however to say whether the UK believed America had breached international law.

He told Sky News there was a need to have “all the facts” amid the “fog of war” before making such an allegation.

Mr Tapp added: “We will see later today – well, an application has gone into the Speaker – for a statement from the Foreign Secretary later today, so there may well be more detail on that.”

The UN Security Council, of which the UK is a permanent member, is due to meet on Monday to discuss the operation in Venezuela.

Mr Tapp would not reveal whether Britain plans to abstain on any vote during the meeting, as reported by the Times.

The minister would also not be drawn into saying whether the Government believes the removal of Maduro was influenced by the South American nation’s rich oil reserves.

Asked why he thought US president Donald Trump had instigated the operation, the Home Office said: “This is for Donald Trump to answer, and I think he has said in his press conference, which I watched with interest, around narco-terrorism and that threat.”

Pressed by the broadcaster whether Venezuela’s vast oil wealth may have influenced the operation, Mr Tapp replied: “It’s not for me or the British Government at this point to go into that detail.

“It’s for the United States to lay out its legal basis for this operation.”

Speaking to reporters over the weekend, Mr Trump revealed his plans to “fix” Venezuela’s oil infrastructure and sell “large amounts” of the fuel to other nations.

The removal of Maduro is seen as the most assertive US intervention to achieve regime change since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and followed months of pressure from Washington on the country and its autocratic leader.

Widespread protests followed Maduro’s apparent victory in the 2024 Venezuelan presidential election, amid accusations that electoral fraud led to him retaining power.

He was also accused of human rights abuses and corruption during his leadership.

Delcy Rodriguez, who served as Maduro’s vice president, has indicated she hopes to work with the US now she is the country’s interim leader.

The Trump administration has not indicated support for replacing the ruling regime with a government led by Maduro’s opposition rival Maria Corina Machado, who recently won the Nobel Peace Prize.

Elsewhere, Mr Trump has suggested that Venezuela may not be the last country subject to American intervention, recently telling the Atlantic magazine: “We do need Greenland, absolutely.”

Mr Tapp appeared unwilling to give a full-throated rebuttal of the US president’s desire to take over Greenland, which is a territory of Denmark, a Nato ally of both Britain and America.

He told Sky that Venezuela and Greenland were “obviously different” situations, but suggested it was for Denmark and the US to discuss, adding: “It’s for Nato to have that solid anchor to ensure that there is no division here.”

Sir Keir Starmer is resisting calls from within Labour, as well as some opposition critics, to take a tougher stance on the US president, arguing that a close relationship with America is critical for security and defence.

Asked whether he would condemn the military action in Venezuela on Saturday, Sir Keir said he wanted to wait to “establish the facts” and speak to Mr Trump, and later insisted the UK would “shed no tears” over the end of Maduro’s regime.

Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside Kim Johnson questioned whether “we as a country still stand for international law and sovereignty”, while Leeds East Labour MP Richard Burgon described the Prime Minister’s statement as “shameful and reckless”.