Politics Germany criticizes USA for the first time over Maduro arrest
Four days after the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro by US special forces, the German government has criticized the actions of the United States for the first time.
07.01.2026, 14:54
07.01.2026, 14:55
SDA
The USA had "not convincingly demonstrated in the UN Security Council that their actions were in accordance with international law", said government spokesman Stefan Kornelius in Berlin.
The USA had attacked Venezuela on Saturday, arrested President Maduro and brought him to New York to bring him before a US court. Berlin had initially refrained from making a legal assessment. It said that it would take time to do so because the matter was complex.
Now the government of Christian Democrat Chancellor Friedrich Merz has taken a clearer position for the first time. However, it has not yet made a clear legal assessment of the US action. The government had been sharply criticized by the opposition for its restraint on the issue.
The USA had argued in the UN Security Council that Maduro's arrest was a "surgical law enforcement measure" against a "drug terrorist". Maduro was not the legitimate head of state. Anyone who treats him equally by invoking the UN Charter is abusing it. The US also pointed out that more than 50 countries rejected Maduro's re-election in 2024 and do not recognize him as the legitimately elected president of Venezuela.
