Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro warned that his country must “stand like warriors … ready to smash the teeth of the North American empire” Wednesday, a moment that coincided with the US seizure of an oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast.

Opposition leader María Corina Machado plans to return to Venezuela whether or not President Nicolás Maduro is removed from power

The Skipper was seized amid growing tensions between the Trump administration and Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a conflict that has implications for the oil industry in Houston and beyond.

There has been an uptick in U.S. aircraft movements near Venezuela this week, as well as large-scale naval activity.

Maduro has survived predictions and ridicule, but along the way, Venezuela lost millions of inhabitants, 72% of its economy, democratic legitimacy in the eyes of much of the world, and many of its most important international allies.

Russia and its close ally Belarus reached out to Venezuela's embattled leader, Nicolas Maduro, on Thursday as U.S. President Donald Trump ramps up pressure for his removal, raising the possibility he could seek refuge abroad.

President Trump’s secretary of state and national security adviser has long sought to cripple or topple Cuba’s government, which has close security and economic ties to Venezuela.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has expressed “solidarity with the Venezuelan people” amid growing tensions between Venezuela’s leader, Nicolás Maduro, and the Trump administration