Brazil’s President Lula said the fate of Venezuela’s president should be decided by “the Venezuelan people” and “not by foreign interference.”
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Published February 21, 2026
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro should be tried, but in a Venezuelan court rather than in the United States, where he is currently being held after his abduction by U.S. forces.
“I believe that if Mr. Maduro needs to be tried, he should be tried in his own country, not abroad,” Lula said in an interview, stressing that “what is important now is to reestablish democracy in Venezuela.”
“The problem must be solved by the Venezuelan people, not by foreign intervention,” Lula said, citing the history of U.S.-backed dictatorships in Latin America, including Chile, Argentina and Uruguay.
“It is unacceptable for one country’s head of state to invade another country and capture its president,” the Brazilian leader added.
Lula’s comments come as Venezuela’s acting president Delcy Rodríguez works to free hundreds of politicians, activists and lawyers imprisoned during Maduro’s term, which began in 2013.
The Brazilian publicly criticized the abduction of Maduro and his wife, Syria Flores, in a military operation ordered by US President Donald Trump on January 3.
Mr. Maduro was flown to New York after being abducted in a bloody night raid in Caracas. He has since been accused by U.S. authorities of plotting to transport drugs to the United States, among other charges.
According to the US government’s own data, Venezuela is not a major drug producer in the world. But Trump administration officials have accused Maduro and others of collaborating with some of the region’s biggest drug-trafficking organizations, including in Colombia and Mexico.
The Trump administration has maintained that its military buildup near Venezuela and naval blockade of the country was focused on combating drug trafficking, but Trump has claimed ownership of Venezuela’s oil reserves since Maduro was removed.
President Trump has also called on U.S. oil companies to exploit Venezuelan crude, saying he wants the proceeds from the sale of Venezuelan crude to “benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States.”
