Eastern Airlines plane carrying Venezuelan migrants deported from US lands in Caracas two weeks after Maduro's capture

An Eastern Airlines plane carrying 231 Venezuelan migrants deported from the US city of Phoenix landed in Venezuela on Friday, nearly two weeks after former president Nicolás Maduro was captured by US authorities and taken to New York to face drug trafficking charges.

The aircraft touched down at an airport near the capital, Caracas, signaling the resumption of deportation flights after Washington, as per Venezuelan officials — unilaterally halted direct air transfers in mid-December. The last such direct flight from the United States had taken place on December 10.

Return flights for deported migrants had been regularised since late March as part of transfer agreements reached by both governments.

However, the process was repeatedly disrupted as tensions escalated after US military forces launched a series of deadly operations against boats suspected of drug smuggling in international waters of the Caribbean and Pacific, including several vessels the United States said had set sail from Venezuela.

Trump has made a tough stance on undocumented immigration a central focus of his second term, overseeing widespread immigration raids and the deportation of migrants.

Maduro also consistently claimed that Trump could order military action aimed at toppling him.

Meanwhile, Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado said on Friday that her country is beginning a "true transition" to democracy and that Venezuela will become free with support from the United States and Trump.

However, Trump has sidelined Nobel laureate Machado and instead supported former vice president Delcy Rodriguez as the interim leader of the oil-rich nation following the January 3 US military operation that captured President Nicolás Maduro.

"We are definitely now into the first steps of a true transition to democracy," Machado said at an event in Washington, adding that it will have an "immense impact in the lives of all Venezuelans" as well as across the region and the world.

"Venezuela is going to be free, and that's going to be achieved with the support of the people of the United States and the president, Donald Trump," she said.

Her party has provided evidence alleging that Maduro stole the 2024 election — claims backed by Washington and much of the international community.

Trump, however, has stated that Machado lacks sufficient support among Venezuelans and has chosen to back Rodriguez, provided she ensures US access to Venezuela's vast oil reserves. Machado said on Friday that Rodriguez is "following orders" rather than acting independently.

Machado’s remarks came a day after US Central Intelligence Agency chief John Ratcliffe met Rodriguez in Caracas. As per a report by AFP, according to a US administration official speaking on condition of anonymity, Ratcliffe visited Venezuela to "deliver the message that the United States looks forward to an improved working relationship."