US Sends Rescue Teams to Venezuela After Earthquake, Maduro Calls for Unity from NY Prison

The United States government has expressed solidarity with the people of Venezuela by committing to send rescue teams and humanitarian supplies after a strong earthquake struck the South American nation on Wednesday. US Deputy Secretary of State for Foreign Assistance Jeremy Lewin stated that the State Department is coordinating with partners in the interim Venezuelan government. “The US will send search and rescue teams, medical and humanitarian supplies, and other resources in the crucial first days after this tragic natural disaster,” Lewin said. Similar support was voiced by Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau via a post on X on Wednesday. “The US stands with the people of Venezuela after tonight’s devastating earthquake,” Landau wrote, adding, “May God bless our Venezuelan friends in this difficult moment. ¡Fuerza Venezuela! ¡Estamos con Ustedes! (Stay strong Venezuela! We are with you!)” Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson confirmed that all personnel at the US Embassy in Caracas are safe and accounted for. Separately, ousted former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro also conveyed his solidarity to the Venezuelan people through a post on his official Telegram channel. “Today, there is only one message: maximum unity, maximum solidarity, and maximum action,” read the message delivered on behalf of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores de Maduro. Maduro and his wife are currently in federal custody in New York on charges of drug trafficking and weapons possession, following their capture by US forces at the presidential palace complex in Caracas earlier in January. Despite being behind bars, Maduro urged citizens to look after one another and support the work of medical teams and rescuers on the ground. “Do not let anyone be alone, let every community look after their children, their grandparents, their sick,” Maduro said in the Telegram post. “Venezuela has faced great tests, and we will also emerge from this test strong, with faith, discipline, and solidarity.”