U.S.-Venezuela tensions: China says U.S. should immediately release Venezuela’s Maduro

China on Sunday (January 4, 2026) called on the United States to release Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife “at once” and “resolve issues through dialogue and negotiation”.

“China expresses grave concern over the U.S. forcibly seizing President Nicolas Maduro and his wife and taking them out of the country”, said a Chinese Foreign Ministry statement in Beijing.

Also read: U.S. attack on Venezuela LIVE updates

The move is in clear violation of international law, basic norms in international relations, and the purposes and principles of the U.N. Charter, it said.

“China calls on the U.S. to ensure the personal safety of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, release them at once, stop toppling the government of Venezuela, and resolve issues through dialogue and negotiation,” it added.

The Ministry earlier on Saturday (January 3, 2026) had condemned the U.S. air strikes, describing it as a hegemonic act.

Countries such as Russia and Iran, which have longstanding ties with Mr. Maduro’s government, were quick to condemn the operation but their alarm was also shared by Washington’s allies including France and the EU.

Russia demanded the U.S. leadership “reconsider its position and release the legally elected President of the sovereign country and his wife”.

Meanwhile, the EU more generally expressed concern at the developments and urged respect for international law, even as it noted that Mr. Maduro “lacks legitimacy”.

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the nation will discuss the “evolving situation” in Venezuela with U.S. counterparts while noting Britain will “shed no tears” about the demise of Mr. Maduro’s “regime”.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the intervention “violates international law and pushes the region toward a horizon of uncertainty”.