Staff Reporter

Deposed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, pleaded not guilty to federal narco-terrorism and weapons charges in a Manhattan courtroom, marking a defiant start to a legal battle following their weekend capture by U.S. Special Forces.

The 40-minute arraignment occurred under unprecedented security just two days after Operation Absolute Resolve, a pre-dawn U.S. military strike in Caracas, shook the foundations of international diplomacy and left Maduro’s government in disarray.

Clad in a blue prison uniform and shackles, the 63-year-old Maduro repeatedly attempted to address U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein in Spanish, asserting that he remains the legitimate leader of Venezuela.

“I am a kidnapped president,” Maduro told the court through an interpreter. “I am innocent. I am a decent man.”

His wife, Cilia Flores, 69, also pleaded not guilty. Her attorney, Mark Donnelly, informed the court that Flores may have sustained fractured ribs during the capture and requested medical attention.

Judge Hellerstein ordered both to remain in custody without bail until their next scheduled appearance on March 17.

As the legal proceedings unfolded in Lower Manhattan, a few miles north at the United Nations, the Security Council convened an emergency session that highlighted a deepening global rift.

South African representative Jonathan Passmoor led a chorus of criticism, accusing Washington of wanton violations of sovereignty.

“These actions reinforce the belief that might is right and undermine diplomacy,” Passmoor said.

“History has demonstrated that military invasions yield only instability.”

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has expressed deep concern that the UN Charter’s prohibition on the use of force had been ignored.

Maduro’s supporters slammed the arrest as an unlawful regime change operation.

The Trump administration has justified the operation not only on the basis of the 2020 drug trafficking indictments but also by claiming Venezuela stole U.S. oil.

This claim has triggered further international outcry regarding the potential for neo-colonial resource seizure.