Labor says Australia will hold off on conclusions until Washington explains the legal basis for the operation and what comes next for Venezuela.
The Albanese government has called for a detailed US briefing on the weekend operation that seized Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro as President Donald Trump claimed the United States is now steering events in Caracas and floated the prospect of further military action.
According to Treasurer Jim Chalmers, the government was closely monitoring developments after receiving an initial briefing from Australian agencies.
We are supporters of international law and it’s for the Americans to make clear the legal basis of the steps taken over the weekend was stated by Treasurer Jim Chalmers during a press conference.
Industry and Science minister Tim Ayres also urged caution, saying the government’s immediate focus was establishing what occurred and the evidence behind Washington’s claims.
In domestic politics, Labor’s measured stance has been matched by warnings from across the parliament about escalation and precedent.
Nationals leader David Littleproud urged the US to avoid a drawn out intervention and to articulate an end state focused on Venezuelan sovereignty while opposition leader Sussan Ley argued Maduro’s removal was welcome as a matter of principle.
The US says Maduro is due to appear before a federal judge in New York on Monday after being taken into custody during a raid in Caracas.
The Trump administration has characterised the move as a law enforcement action tied to criminal charges first filed in 2020 while Trump has spoken openly about oil and migration as drivers of the decision and has not ruled out a second strike if Venezuela’s interim leadership does not cooperate with US demands.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has pushed back on comparisons to past US interventions arguing the mission was limited and targeted.
The White House said Rubio told US media the operation was not a war and that US forces were on the ground for about two hours when they went to capture Maduro while also claiming the action did not require congressional approval because it was not an invasion.
Internationally, the legality of seizing a sitting head of state has become a flashpoint. The UN Security Council planned to discuss the operation and that UN Secretary General António Guterres described it as a dangerous precedent with multiple governments raising concerns about sovereignty and international law.
Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Beijing did not accept any country acting as the world’s judge and stressed that sovereignty and security should be protected under international law underscoring the geopolitical shockwaves from the US move.
For Australia, the immediate focus includes consular risk and broader economic spillovers from a crisis in an oil rich country. Reuters reported oil prices were choppy and edged higher as investors assessed the implications of US military action while Asian equity markets rose.
Chalmers said DFAT was working to determine whether any Australians had been affected and reiterated that the travel advice for Venezuela has been Do Not Travel for some time.
He said the advice for any Australians caught up in the situation was to shelter in place and stay across DFAT updates as they develop.
With Maduro’s court appearance expected in the United States and questions mounting at the UN Labor signalled Canberra would keep pressing Washington for clarity before taking a definitive view on the operation’s legality or its implications for the region’s stability.
