President Donald Trump said Sunday night that discussions with Venezuela’s socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro are possible and that Maduro wants to talk.
Trump’s comments came during a press gaggle with reporters shortly after Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the State Department plans to designate the Cartel de los Soles, or the Cartel of the Suns, a foreign terrorist organization (FTO), adding that officials believe Maduro is the cartel’s leader.
“With the designation of that cartel associated with Maduro, does that mean that the U.S. government can target Maduro’s assets or infrastructure inside Venezuela?” a reporter asked Trump as he prepared to depart Palm Beach International Airport for Washington.
“It allows us to do that, but we haven’t said we’re going to do that,” Trump said. “We may be having some discussions with Maduro, and we’ll see how that turns out. They would like to talk.”
Hours earlier, Rubio announced in a statement the intention to designate Cartel de los Soles an FTO beginning next Monday:
The Department of State intends to designate Cartel de los Soles as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), effective November 24, 2025. Based in Venezuela, the Cartel de los Soles is headed by Nicolás Maduro and other high-ranking individuals of the illegitimate Maduro regime who have corrupted Venezuela’s military, intelligence, legislature, and judiciary. Neither Maduro nor his cronies represent Venezuela’s legitimate government. Cartel de los Soles by and with other designated FTOs including Tren de Aragua and the Sinaloa Cartel are responsible for terrorist violence throughout our hemisphere as well as for trafficking drugs into the United States and Europe.
The United States will continue using all available tools to protect our national security interests and deny funding and resources to narco-terrorists.
In August, the State Department announced a reward of up to $50 million for the arrest or conviction of Maduro, up from the $25 million reward set in early January. In July, the Treasury Department sanctioned the Cartel de los Soles as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist.
Wanted poster for Nicolas Maduro. (State.gov)
Trump said in October that Maduro had offered “everything” to cling to power when asked about a rumor of Maduro and those under him reaching out to the administration.
“He’s offered everything; you’re right. You know why? Because he doesn’t want to fuck around with the United States,” Trump said.
According to Insight Crime, an organized crime analysis organization, the Cartel de los Soles’ inception in drug trafficking through the Venezuelan military was under late dictator Hugo Chavez, who died in 2013.
