| Area Total | 912,050 sq km |
| Climate | tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands |
| Natural Resources | petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, bauxite, other minerals, hydropower, diamonds |
| Imports | agricultural products, livestock, raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, construction materials, medical equipment, petroleum products, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, iron and steel products – US 24.8%, China 14.2%, Mexico 9.5% (2017) |
| Government | federal presidential republic |
| Capital | Caracas |
| Population | 31,689,176 (July 2018 est.) |
| Ethnicity | unspecified Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Arab, German, African, indigenous people |
| Language | Spanish (official), numerous indigenous dialects |
| Exports | petroleum and petroleum products, bauxite and aluminum, minerals, chemicals, agricultural products – US 34.8%, India 17.2%, China 16%, Netherlands Antilles 8.2%, Singapore 6.3%, Cuba 4.2% (2017) |
News about Venezuela
- Venezuela men sue aviation firms who flew them to notorious Salvadorian jail
by José Olivares in New York on July 26, 2026Exclusive: CSI Aviation and GlobalX accused of violating civil rights as part of Trump immigration crackdownVenezuelan men sent last year to a notorious Salvadorian terrorism prison by the Trump administration are suing the US aviation companies that transported them there.A lawsuit filed this week in federal court in Washington DC accuses the companies CSI […]
- World Bank estimates $19.6 billion in earthquake damage in Venezuela
on July 23, 2026The twin earthquakes that struck northern Venezuela on June 24 caused an estimated $19.6 billion in direct physical damage, according to a preliminary assessment published on Thursday by the World Bank. The figure is equivalent to about 18% of the country's gross domestic product, based on International Monetary Fund data.
- New York judge sets June 2027 for the start of Maduro and Cilia Flores's trial
on July 23, 2026Federal Judge Alvin Hellerstein set June 1, 2027, as the preliminary start date for the trial of former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in the narcoterrorism case they face in the United States. The decision came on Wednesday during the case's third hearing before the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, […]
- Venezuela’s Maduro gets June 2027 trial date in US drug-trafficking case
by Associated Press on July 22, 2026Venezuelan president and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been held at Brooklyn jail and both have pleaded not guiltyThe ousted Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, will go on trial on US drug trafficking charges starting on 1 June 2027, a judge said on Wednesday.Maduro wore beige prison garb as he was led into a Manhattan […]
- ‘The moles of Poblado Uno’: villagers’ mission to recover body of Venezuela quake victim
by Tom Phillips in El Junquito. Photographs by Manu Quintero on July 22, 2026The Guedez García family spent 18 days searching for their missing daughter in La Guaira, Venezuela, after devastating earthquakes last month. When her body was finally found, the family and volunteers from their village of Poblado Uno travelled back home to lay her to restIn a mountainside cemetery high above Caracas, far from the chaos of Venezuela’s […]
- Rubio says talks on Venezuela's democratic transition will begin in early August
on July 20, 2026U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that talks to begin a democratic transition in Venezuela will start in early August. Rubio, who leads Washington's relationship with Caracas, said a group representing the National Assembly elected in 2015 —the last one the United States recognizes as legitimate— met with the interim government and […]
- Venezuela raises official death toll from June double earthquake above 5,000
on July 17, 2026The official death toll from the double earthquake that struck northern Venezuela on June 24 rose on Friday to 5,069, after 139 new fatalities were added, according to the president of Parliament, Jorge Rodríguez. The tally, released via Telegram, keeps the number of injured at 16,740 and of people left homeless at 17,907. Authorities present these figures […]
- Miami ruling links Maduro to "hostage diplomacy," orders $314 million in damages
on July 15, 2026A federal judge in Miami ordered $314 million in damages to be paid to three US citizens who were imprisoned in Venezuela, where they said they were tortured by intelligence services before being freed in a 2023 exchange with Washington for Colombian businessman Alex Saab.
- Venezuela’s interim government and opposition to begin formal talks
by Tiago Rogero South America correspondent on July 15, 2026Nobel laureate María Corina Machado will not lead negotiations over new elections, contrary to expectationsThe interim government of Venezuela has announced it will begin formal talks with the opposition aimed at “strengthening democracy” in the country.The move is backed by the US, which says it is seeking a “democratic transition” in a country […]
- US-backed talks between Venezuela's two parliaments to begin August 1
on July 14, 2026The two legislative bodies vying for legitimacy in Venezuela will begin a joint working agenda on August 1, promoted by the United States, with the stated aim of moving toward a democratic reinstitutionalization of the country, more than six months after the capture of former President Nicolás Maduro.
- ‘God is punishing the politicians’: anger at earthquake response grows in Venezuela
by Tom Phillips in Caracas on July 14, 2026Threat of social unrest rises as public indignation at lack of disaster aid comes on top of fallout from US military intervention• A revolution in ruins: fury amid the rubble of a housing project in quake-hit VenezuelaPublic anger at what many perceive as the Venezuelan government’s botched response to twin earthquakes that killed nearly 4,500 people is […]
- Venezuela names its envoy to Washington as foreign minister in cabinet reshuffle
on July 14, 2026Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, has appointed diplomat Félix Plasencia to head a new Ministry of Foreign Relations and Trade, merging the diplomatic and foreign trade portfolios. Plasencia had until now served as Venezuela's chief of mission in the United States, and replaces Yvan Gil, foreign minister since 2023, who moves to the Ministry […]
- Uruguay postpones second aid flight to Venezuela over changed entry conditions
on July 14, 2026Uruguay has postponed the second shipment of humanitarian aid to Venezuela, scheduled for Tuesday, after a change in the conditions set by Venezuelan authorities for the entry of cargo, Defense Minister Sandra Lazo said. The Air Force's KC-130H Hercules remains loaded with some 15 tons of supplies intended for victims of the June 24 twin earthquakes.
- Venezuela quake toll rises to 4,490 as government defends withholding missing figure
on July 13, 2026The death toll from the twin earthquakes that struck northern Venezuela on June 24 rose to at least 4,490, after another 157 fatalities were added to Saturday's count, according to figures released by the president of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez. The number of injured held at 16,740 and that of people rescued alive at 6,462.
- A revolution in ruins: fury amid the rubble of a housing project in quake-hit Venezuela
by Tom Phillips in Caraballeda. Photographs by Manu Quintero on July 12, 2026Discontent with Trump-backed government mounts as Chávez heirs struggle to respond to disaster for which they seem ill-preparedEven before two powerful earthquakes reduced the OPPE 25 government housing project to an anarchy of shattered concrete and broken lives, the foundations of Hugo Chávez’s populist “Bolivarian” revolution were shaking in what […]
