UPDATE 2 - Cuba, Colombia oppose US military strikes on Venezuela

ADDS DETAILS, CHANGES DECK

By Yasin Gungor

ISTANBUL (AA) - Leaders of Cuba and Colombia have opposed US military strikes in Venezuela, which President Donald Trump described as "large scale."

"Cuba denounces and demands an urgent reaction from the international community against the criminal US attack on Venezuela," Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said on US social media company X.

He said the region is "being brutally assaulted" and called it "state terrorism against the brave Venezuelan people and against Our America."

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez said Havana "strongly" condemns the US attack and added it represents "cowardly acts against a nation that has not attacked the US or any other country."

Colombian President Gustavo Petro rejected "any unilateral military action that would exacerbate the situation or put civilian populations at risk."

In a separate statement, Petro said he held a national security council meeting, adding that public forces are being deployed to the border, and all available support forces are being deployed in case of a massive influx of refugees.

Trinidad and Tobago, a dual-island Caribbean nation that Venezuela has accused of involvement in the US seizure of an oil tanker departing Venezuela on Dec. 10, said they had no role in Saturday’s attacks.

“Trinidad and Tobago continues to maintain peaceful relations with the people of Venezuela,” said Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

- US-aligned countries back attacks

Meanwhile, governments aligned with the US in the region signalled their support for the military action.

Argentina's President Javier Milei, who Trump endorsed in the country's latest elections, quoted a news story claiming that the US had captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and wrote: “Freedom advances! long live freedom.”

El Salvador's leader Nayib Bukele reposted a July post on X related to Maduro's government. The post, which mentioned a prisoner exchange agreement that took place at the time, claimed that Caracas was “shouting and getting indignant” because "they've run out of hostages from the world's most powerful country."

Earlier, Venezuela’s government accused the US of attacking civilian and military installations in multiple states, and declared ‌a national ‌emergency.

Trump confirmed the strike on his social media platform Truth Social, saying Maduro and his wife "has been … captured and flown out of the country."