Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro repeated calls for peace and pledged “absolute loyalty” to his people at a rally attended by thousands in Caracas, as tensions rise over potential US military action.
Monday’s rally came as US President Donald Trump met with his national security team at the White House to discuss “next steps” on Venezuela, according to media reports.
Maduro, addressing a crowd waving Venezuelan flags outside the presidential palace in Caracas, said his country wanted peace, but only a peace “with sovereignty, equality and freedom”.
“We do not want the peace of a slave, nor the peace of colonies! Colony, never! Slaves, never!” he said.
The Trump administration has pressured Venezuela with a military buildup in the Caribbean in what it calls a campaign against drug trafficking. Caracas says the actions are aimed at toppling Maduro’s government.
The US has amassed 15,000 troops in the region and deployed the world’s largest aircraft carrier there, while designating the Cartel de los Soles, which it describes as a drug-trafficking cartel led by Maduro, as a “terrorist” organization.
It has also carried out at least 21 strikes on suspected drug boats in the Caribbean and Pacific since September, killing at least 83 people.
Experts say the assembled US firepower far exceeds what is needed for a drug-trafficking operation, while Caracas claims the US is seeking regime change to seize control of Venezuela’s vast natural resources, including oil.
Supporters of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro attend a ceremony in Caracas, Venezuela, December 1, 2025 [Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/ Reuters]
Maduro on Monday accused the US of waging a campaign of “psychological terrorism”.
“I endured 22 weeks of abuse that can be described as psychological terrorism,” he said. “These 22 weeks have put us to the test, and the people of Venezuela have demonstrated their love for their homeland,” he added.
Trump-Maduro call
Meanwhile, Trump confirmed on Sunday that he had spoken to Maduro by phone but declined to elaborate, saying it did not go “good or bad.”
Reuters news agency, citing four sources familiar with the matter, reported on Monday that Trump had offered Maduro a safe exit from Venezuela during the brief Nov. 21 call.
Maduro told Trump he was willing to leave Venezuela provided he and his family members were granted full legal amnesty, including the removal of all US sanctions and the conclusion of a landmark case he is facing at the International Criminal Court (ICC), Reuters reported, citing three of the sources.
He also called for the lifting of sanctions on more than 100 Venezuelan government officials, many accused by the US of human rights abuses, drug trafficking or corruption, Reuters said.
Trump rejected most of his requests on the call, but told Maduro he had one week to leave Venezuela for a destination of his choosing with his family members.
That safe passage expired on Friday, prompting Trump to declare on Saturday that Venezuela’s airspace had been closed, two of the sources told Reuters.
There was no immediate comment from the US or Venezuela on the report.
The Trump administration has said it does not recognize Maduro, who has been in power since 2013, as Venezuela’s legitimate president. Maduro claimed a re-election victory last year in a national poll that the US and other Western governments dismissed as a sham and which independent observers said the opposition won overwhelmingly.
Al Jazeera’s Teresa Bo, reporting from Cucuta on the Colombia-Venezuelan border, said Maduro’s appearance at the Caracas rally came amid rumors he may have left the country following Trump’s announcement of closing Venezuelan airspace.
Bo said people crossing the Simon Bolivar Bridge between the two countries are “extremely concerned about the possibility of a US military attack” on Venezuela.
“Meanwhile, Venezuela continues to deploy military units throughout the country. They protect the capital, Caracas, especially the main highway connecting the airport and the coastal areas of Venezuela. I saw Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez showing off some military equipment, including air defense. [and] fighter jets,” she said.
Sources in Venezuela told Al Jazeera they know the country’s military is no match for the US, she said.
“That’s why they are focusing on another strategy. And that would include irregular attacks, sabotage, using criminal groups, government supporters and possibly guerrillas, among others,” Bo said.
“The main idea would be to generate chaos [and] anarchy and that is something that concerns many people in the country. And there are some who say that while they would like to see Maduro go, they are worried that violence could take over their country.”