Ousted Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro -- now in United States custody in New York -- had been navigating complex geopolitical challenges as his government faced mounting pressure from the Trump administration for weeks and months before his abduction by American special forces.
These photographs in the days and weeks before he was captured by US troops on the night of January 2-3 capture Maduro's diplomatic engagements with Chinese and Russian officials, his appearances at military events and public celebrations with his wife Cilia Flores.
IMAGE: Nicolas Maduro and Qiu Xiaoqi, special representative of the Chinese government on Latin American affairs, meet at the Miraflores palace in Caracas, Venezuela, January 2, 2026, hours before the Venuzuelan leader was captured by American soldiers. Photograph: Marcelo Garcia/Miraflores Palace/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: Months earlier, Maduro had traveled to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin, May 7, 2025. Photograph: Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via Reuters
IMAGE: Maduro holds Simon Bolivar's sword as he addresses members of the Venuzuelan armed forces, the Bolivarian Militia, police, at the Fort Tiuna military base in Caracas, November 25, 2025. American firepower was directed at the military base early on Saturday. Photograph: Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/Reuters
IMAGE: Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores -- who was also captured by the Americans -- at a year-end salutation to military forces in La Guaira, December 28, 2025. Photograph: Miraflores Palace/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: Maduro, Cilia Flores, Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez, right, and then vice president Delcy Rodriguez, left, at a year-end salutation to military forces in La Guaira, December 28, 2025. Photograph: Miraflores Palace/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: Maduro attends a year-end salutation to military forces in La Guaira, December 28, 2025. Photograph: Miraflores Palace/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: Maduro attends a Christmas celebration in the San Agustin neighborhood in Caracas, December 23, 2025. Photograph: Miraflores Palace/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: Maduro and Venezuela's then vice president Delcy Rodriguez at the Expo Motores Productivo in Caracas, December 22, 2025. Delcy Rodriguez is Venuzuela's president for now. Photograph: Miraflores Palace/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: Maduro dances with a robot during the Expo Motores Productivo in Caracas, December 22, 2025. Photograph: Miraflores Palace/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: Maduro and Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez at an event at the Mariche Metrocable station in Caracas, December 18, 2025. Photograph: Miraflores Palace/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: Maduro and Cilia Flores at an event at the Mariche Metrocable station in Caracas, December 18, 2025. Photograph: Miraflores Palace/Handout via Reuters
IMAGE: Maduro holds a sword which belonged to Ezequiel Zamora, a Venezuelan soldier and leader of the Federalists in the federal war, as he addresses supporters during a march in Caracas, December 10, 2025 to commemorate the Battle of Santa Ines on the same day Venezuelan Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize in Norway. Photograph: Leonardo Fernandez Viloria/Reuters
Photographs curated and Feature Presentation by Manisha Kotian/Rediff
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