(ZENIT News / Rome, 10.08.2025).- Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has turned to the Vatican for what he calls a “diplomatic embrace of peace,” appealing directly to Pope Leo XIV for help in preventing what he describes as a campaign of destabilization orchestrated by the United States. The request came amid renewed friction between Caracas and Washington, as U.S. naval forces carry out operations in the Caribbean that the Trump administration says are aimed at dismantling drug trafficking networks, but which Maduro denounces as preparations for “regime change.”
Speaking during his weekly television program «Con Maduro +», broadcast on the state channel VTV, the Venezuelan leader said he had written personally to the Pope, asking for the Holy See’s mediation to safeguard “peace and stability” in the country. “I have great faith that Pope Leo, as I wrote in my letter, will help Venezuela preserve peace,” he said, describing the Pontiff as “a balanced man of peace, a worthy successor to Francis.”
Maduro praised what he called the Vatican’s quiet involvement in humanitarian matters, citing efforts to repatriate Venezuelan children allegedly “taken” to the United States. “We have already brought back more than forty-five children,” he said, claiming that “around seventy remain detained abroad.”
The President also linked his appeal to a moment of national religious pride: the upcoming canonization of Dr. José Gregorio Hernández, a beloved physician revered across Venezuela. “His sainthood comes at a time when our country is being threatened by the greatest military power in history,” Maduro declared, framing the event as a sign of divine encouragement for a nation “under siege.”
Meanwhile, Venezuela’s capital saw hundreds of pro-government demonstrators march toward the United Nations offices, urging the organization to uphold the principles of international peace and sovereignty enshrined in its Charter. The march, led by senior officials and government supporters, echoed the President’s rhetoric that Venezuela faces not a local political crisis but a global confrontation over independence and self-determination.
Across the Caribbean, U.S. military activity has intensified since early September, with four reported strikes on vessels suspected of trafficking narcotics. The latest, on October 3, resulted in four deaths. According to U.S. officials, the operations fall within a new interpretation of executive authority that treats transnational drug cartels as “unlawful combatants,” enabling direct military engagement without the need for congressional approval.
For Caracas, however, these actions are proof of a broader campaign. “These are not anti-narcotics operations,” Maduro has insisted. “They are an attempt to create conditions for aggression against Venezuela.”
In recent years, the Vatican has repeatedly sought to mediate in Venezuelan political disputes, often through discreet diplomacy. But Pope Leo XIV’s stance—seen by Maduro as a continuation of Pope Francis’s cautious engagement with Latin America—remains measured. Vatican sources have not commented on the letter, nor confirmed receipt of it.
Still, the timing of Maduro’s appeal is significant. With economic pressures mounting and geopolitical tensions rising, the Venezuelan leader appears eager to frame his government as a victim of external hostility and a defender of peace—an image he hopes will resonate both domestically and abroad.
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