Trump says US will 'run' Venezuela until 'safe transition can take place'

Trump says the US is "going to run" Venezuela until "such a time that we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition" of power.

Trump thanks the military for their "breathtaking speed, power, precision and competence".

He says these "highly trained warriors" were operating in collaboration with US law enforcement.

Venezuelan forces were "waiting for us", he says, with "many ships out".

Despite being in a "ready position", Trump says Venezuelan forces were "completely overwhelmed and very quickly incapacitated".

Not a single US serviceman was killed, and no equipment was lost, he adds.

Trump says the US has "knocked out 97% of drugs coming in by sea", and alleges that each boat carrying drugs kills 25,000 people on average.

He also alleges that most of the drugs come from Venezuela. The BBC has not verified these figures.

All political and military figures in Venezuela should understand that what happened to Maduro could happen to them, Trump says.

"Venezuelan people are free again," he adds. He also says America is a "safer" and "prouder nation" today.

He then hands over to Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who begins by describing the operation this morning as "a massive joint military and law enforcement raid, flawlessly executed".

Maduro "had his chance, just like Iran had their chance", Hegseth says, but adds that he messed around.

US ready to stage second 'much larger' attack on Venezuela if needed, says Trump

Trump now turns now to oil. He claims the oil business in Venezuela has been a "bust", and that large US companies are going to go into the country to fix the infrastructure and "start making money for the country".

He adds the US is "ready" to stage a second "and much larger" attack on the country if needed.

He says they were initially prepared to do a "second wave" and had assumed it would be necessary, that but given the success of last night's attack, it probably would now not be.

The US "partnership" with Venezuela will make the people of Venezuela "rich, independent and safe", says Trump.

Venezuelans living in the US will be "extremely happy", he adds.

"They're not going to suffer any more," he tells the news conference.

Trump calls Maduro an "illegitimate dictator" who was responsible for the bringing of "colossal amounts of deadly illicit drugs" into the US, and accuses him of overseeing the Cartel de los Soles cartel.

Maduro has previously vehemently denied being a cartel leader.

Donald Trump is describing the successful military operation in Venezuela with typical bravado. It was a display of “overwhelming military power” and a “spectacular assault”.

He called it “one of the most stunning, effective and powerful displays of American military might and competence in American history”.

Supporting those boasts is the fact that no American military personnel were killed and, by Trump’s account, no US military equipment was destroyed, while the objective - capturing Nicolas Maduro and his wife - was achieved.

Trump says the US force went against "a heavily fortified military fortress" in the heart of Caracas to bring Maduro "to justice".

He compares it to previous military operations against Iran - including against nuclear targets.

"No nation in the world could achieve what America achieved yesterday," he says.

All Venezuelan military capabilities were "rendered powerless" in the attack, he says.

He adds the lights of Caracas were turned off during the operation "due to a certain expertise" that America has.

Both Maduro and his wife "now face American justice" says Trump, adding they have been indicted in the southern district of New York for their "campaign of deadly narco-terrorism" against the US and its citizens.