‘Don’t ask me who’s in charge’: Trump declares the U.S. is now running a Latin American country, and warns two others they’re next

President Donald Trump revealed who is running Venezuela right now and said that Cuba’s government might fall apart soon. He also warned Colombia’s president. These comments show how his administration is taking a much harder line against left-wing governments in Latin America. 

According to Politico, Trump made these remarks on Air Force One while flying back to Washington. This happened just two days after American military forces went into Caracas to arrest Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife.

“Cuba looks like it’s ready to fall,” Trump said. “I don’t know if they’re going to hold out.” He said Cuba only stays alive because Venezuela supports it with money. Trump didn’t say the U.S. would use military force to push Cuba’s government out of power.

Trump’s bold moves show he wants new governments across the region

Many U.S. presidents before have said Cuba’s communist government would fall. The government survived even when the Soviet Union collapsed. But Trump’s words show his administration clearly wants regime changes in several countries. “Don’t ask me about who’s in charge [of Venezuela] because it will be controversial,” Trump said. “We’re in charge.”

Trump said he wants to fix Venezuela’s oil industry and other parts of the country before holding an election. The U.S. military operation in Venezuela happened after weeks of rising tensions. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggested that steel and aluminum businesses could be rebuilt to help the U.S.

For now, Trump said he will work with Delcy Rodriguez, who is now acting president of Venezuela. The president said he expects Rodriguez and Venezuela’s new government to let American forces work freely in the country to help rebuild it. But Trump warned, “if they don’t behave, we will do a second strike.”

Trump also went after Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro, who has criticized the U.S. action in Venezuela. “Colombia is very sick too: run by a sick man who likes making cocaine and sending it to the United States, and he’s not going to be doing it very long,” Trump said. Kamala Harris criticized the Maduro seizure and raised concerns about American safety.

Trump also repeated that he wants to take control of Greenland. This came just hours after Denmark’s Prime Minister criticized him for threatening to annex the territory. “We need Greenland from a national security situation,” Trump said. “The EU needs us to have Greenland.”