Trump confirms he spoke with Maduro

U.S. President Donald Trump answered questions from reporters on the plane while returning from Florida to Washington. Addressing a question about the negotiation process aimed at ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, Trump stated that the talks were progressing and expressed that their goal was to end the conflict. Noting that there were some minor problems on the Ukrainian front, Trump said, "Difficult problems. But I think Russia wants the war to end. I know for a fact that Ukraine wants it too." When asked what these "minor problems" were, he explained, "There is still a corruption issue on the agenda, and that doesn't help the process." When asked, "Does this hinder the peace talks?", he replied, "I said this (the war) has been going on for 3 years, right? This is way behind schedule. But I still think we have a chance to make a deal."

“WE DO NOT SEE VENEZUELA AS A FRIENDLY COUNTRY”

Trump also made assessments regarding the tension with Venezuela. When asked about the reason for the warning issued for Venezuelan airspace, he said, "Because we do not see Venezuela as a very friendly country. They sent millions of people to our country; probably a number beyond that. A significant portion of these people should not have been in our country: those coming from prisons, gangs, drug dealers. None of these people who entered our country should have been here. They caused many problems and drug issues." When asked, "Is the U.S. warning regarding Venezuelan airspace a signal of an attack?", Trump replied, "Do not read anything into that."

NO STATEMENT ON MADURO CALL

Trump also confirmed for the first time the claims in the U.S. media that he had spoken with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. When asked, "Was there a phone call with Maduro?", he replied, "My answer is yes, but I do not want to comment on this matter." He avoided giving details despite persistent questions from reporters about the content of the call. When asked, "Can you say the meeting went well?", he replied, "I can say it went well." On the other hand, regarding the allegations that U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth ordered the killing of wounded individuals during operations against boats suspected of carrying drugs, Trump said, "Pete said there was no such thing, I trust him. I am not in a position to comment on this."

“THE ELECTIONS IN HONDURAS ARE A VERY IMPORTANT RACE”

Answering questions about why he planned a pardon for former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez, Trump blamed the Joe Biden administration. Claiming that a large portion of the Honduran people believe the process was organized by Biden, Trump gave the following answer to the question, "Do you have evidence that Hernandez is a victim of a conspiracy?": "You can look at this: Take any country you want. If someone is selling drugs in that country, that does not mean you should arrest the president of that country. You cannot do the same thing in another country. This includes our country. When someone commits a crime, you don't go and put the president of the country in jail. They said this was a setup by Biden. They argued that it was a game set up by the Biden administration. There is a very big election race this week, or rather next week. I think it will be a very important race. It will be interesting to see how it turns out for Honduras."

“THE SUSPENSION OF ASYLUM APPLICATIONS MAY LAST A LONG TIME”

Trump also answered questions about immigration policies implemented after it was revealed that one of the perpetrators of the armed attack on two National Guardsmen near the White House was of Afghan descent. When reminded that the U.S. has suspended asylum applications, he was asked how long this would last, to which he replied, "I think for a long time. We don't want these people. There are enough problems; we don't want these people. There is no time limit, but it could be a long time." When asked who he meant by the phrase "these people," he gave the following explanation: "I mean people coming from unfriendly countries. From countries that cannot even control themselves. For example, like Somalia. Countries that have almost no government, no army, no police. All they do is kill each other. Then they come to our country and tell us how to run our country. We don't want them." When asked if all 19 countries subject to immigration restrictions were "third-world countries," Trump replied, "No. They are not all third-world, but most of them are. These are countries that are not in good shape. Countries with very high crime rates. Countries without a successful state structure. And let me be clear, we don't need their people to come here and tell us what to do."

“IF I HAVE THE AUTHORITY, I WILL DO IT”

When reminded of his statements that some people could be stripped of their citizenship, Trump said, "Are you talking about people who are here and shouldn't be here? We'll see. There are criminals who entered our country, and perhaps they were naturalized by someone who was incompetent or didn't know what they were doing. If I have such authority; which I'm not sure; but if I do, I will revoke the citizenship. I definitely will." Regarding the concept of "reverse migration," which he previously said he considered important, he said, "I mean this: Removing people who are in our country and shouldn't be here. I want to send them away from here. There are too many people in our country who shouldn't be here. They all came during the Biden era. He was the worst president in our country's history. But the biggest mistake he made was letting in millions of people, people who shouldn't be in our country. There were drug dealers. Prisons were emptied and people were directed to our country. Look at who was let into our country. We are paying a heavy price for this and will continue to pay for years. This includes the murderer who recently killed two national guardsmen. That monster should never have been allowed to enter our country."

“I SPOKE WITH THE FAMILIES OF THE ATTACKED NATIONAL GUARDSMEN”

Stating that he spoke with the families of the two National Guardsmen who lost their lives and were seriously injured in the attack near the White House, Trump said, "I spoke with both families. Let me tell you the current situation. They are shattered. Do you understand this? They are absolutely devastated." He also stated that he plans to invite these families to the White House when they are ready, saying, "I even suggested it. I told them to come to the White House when they are ready, which is a very difficult process. We will honor Sarah. The same for Andrew. Whether he recovers or not, we will honor him too." Trump also stated that his Special Envoy Steve Witkoff's planned meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin will take place next week.

News Source: İHA