Trump Administration Seeks Formal Agreement for Long-Term US Military Presence in Venezuela

The Trump administration is negotiating a legal agreement with Venezuela that would allow American troops to remain in the country on a long-term basis, the New York Times reported on November 3. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is leading the talks, a striking diplomatic pivot given that the two countries have been adversaries for years and that the United States carried out a military operation against Venezuela earlier in 2026.

The push for a formalized troop presence comes after the US military captured former Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, with Trump subsequently declaring that the US would effectively run the country. Rubio had previously told lawmakers that the administration did not intend further military action and that no US forces were on the ground, making the new negotiations a significant escalation of America's stated ambitions in Venezuela.

The backdrop to the talks includes an earlier US military operation that resulted in Maduro's arrest on federal narco-terrorism charges and the installation of an interim leadership structure in Caracas. A formal status-of-forces style agreement, if concluded, would mark an unprecedented shift in the US-Venezuela relationship and give Washington a recognized legal basis for a sustained military footprint in South America.