In the tense weeks before Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro was seized by United States forces in early January, Russia pursued a covert back-channel effort via the Vatican to avert military confrontation by offering Maduro safe haven on Russian soil, according to diplomatic sources cited by ABC.
The proposal, reportedly relayed through Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Holy See, would have granted asylum to Maduro and provided personal security guarantees under the direct patronage of President Vladimir Putin.
Those involved in the mediation effort, which also extended to several senior figures from Maduro’s administration, hoped it might forestall direct conflict and preserve broader channels of dialogue between Moscow and Washington on other strategic issues, including the war in Ukraine. The Vatican’s intervention came amid mounting concern that a unilateral US military operation could destabilise the region and fuel a dangerous escalation between global powers.
This unprecedented asylum offer echoed an arrangement Russia previously made for Bashar al-Assad after the Syrian leader’s overthrow in December 2024. Assad was granted protection but lived in virtual isolation, with limited external contact despite formal sanctuary.
Despite the Kremlin’s backing and the Vatican’s mediation, the plan stalled when Maduro reportedly rejected the terms. The former Venezuelan president’s negotiating stance, according to sources, centred on securing “complete immunity, economic assurances and the ability to maintain a comfortable living standard” in exile, demands that Moscow and intermediaries deemed unacceptable within the context of broader diplomatic sensitivities.
With the diplomatic avenue exhausted, the situation swiftly tipped into a full-scale military operation named Absolute Resolve, carried out by US forces on the ground in Caracas on 3 January 2026. That operation resulted in Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores being captured and transported to New York to face federal charges, including accusations related to narcoterrorism and weapons conspiracy.
The collapse of the Vatican-channeled deal has since fuelled scrutiny of the diplomatic choices made during the lead-up to the US action. Documentation reviewed by The Washington Post suggests the Vatican had repeatedly sought clarification from US officials about American intentions, and pressed the case for a peaceful resolution that might allow Maduro to depart Venezuela without bloodshed.
However, confidential details of those discussions were later disclosed prematurely, prompting the Vatican to insist that published fragments did not fully and accurately reflect the substance of private conversations.
International reactions to the US operation, which swept aside the exile proposal, have been sharply divided. China condemned the capture as a violation of sovereignty and international law, urging restraint from Washington and respect for established norms. Russia’s foreign ministry likewise lambasted the intervention as unjustified aggression while calling for efforts “to prevent further escalation” and return to dialogue.
European and UN voices have been more muted, with some echoing concerns about legality but stopping short of outright condemnation.
In the aftermath, Washington’s focus has shifted to managing the political transition in Venezuela. US officials have signalled plans to quarantine and manage Venezuelan oil resources and insist that the country sever ties with organisations they label as hostile. Meanwhile, interim leadership under Delcy Rodríguez has sought to position itself for cooperation with the US, emphasising peaceful coexistence and regional diplomacy in public remarks.
