KINGSTOWN, St Vincent (CMC) — The St Vincent and the Grenadines Government says it is monitoring the situation in Venezuela very closely, following the invasion by the United States (US) and the capture of the country’s President Nicolas Maduro and his wife.

“Indeed, we are members of the families of nations, of the United Nations and of the Organisation of American States. So, you can well appreciate that the situation is of grave concern to our country and our region,” said the country’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Fitz Bramble.

He said Kingstown recognises that there are “possible, far-reaching implications” for St Vincent and the Grenadines as a small island developing state.

“Resultantly, we will continue to follow closely the situation in Venezuela as it unfolds, and we will continue to assess and respond when necessary to possible economic and other impacts,” Bramble said.

He said Prime Minister Dr Godwin Friday and his government, which is just over one month old, remain committed to the development of St Vincent and the Grenadines and the Caribbean region.

“As a member of Caricom (Caribbean Community), we align ourselves with the statements made by the Caricom Conference of Heads of Government and the Bureau of the Conference of Heads of Government, made on January 2nd and third, 2026, respectively,” Bramble said.

The bureau reiterated a call for “peaceful dialogue” to ensure stability in Venezuela and in their statement, the Caricom Bureau, comprising the St Kitts and Nevis Prime Minister Dr Terrance Drew, who is also the Caricom chairman, Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness and their St Lucian counterpart, Phillip Pierre, said, “Caricom is firmly committed to the fundamental principles of international law and multilateralism enshrined in the UN Charter, including sovereignty and territorial integrity of states and respect for human dignity.”

“The region reiterates its call for peaceful dialogue through diplomatic channels to ensure Venezuela’s stability, good governance, democracy and prosperity for the people of Venezuela,” the bureau said, adding that “Caricom remains ready to support all such efforts, in a spirit of cooperation and mutual respect”.

Bramble said that the St Vincent and the Grenadines Government “will continue to monitor the situation in Venezuela and will keep the people of our blessed land informed of further developments”.

Bramble said Kingstown has been in constant contact with its ambassador in Caracas, Gareth Bynoe, who has advised that all Vincentian diplomatic staff are safe and the country is calm.

He said Bynoe had also advised that the Vincentian embassy had not been contacted by any Vincentian who might be in Venezuela.

Bramble said that both Venezuela and the United States are friends of St Vincent and the Grenadines.

“Indeed, we are members of the families of nations, of the United Nations and of the Organisation of American States. So, you can well appreciate that the situation is of grave concern to our country and our region,” said Bramble, a former diplomat.

Following the US invasion, President Donald Trump told a news conference that the US is going to “run” Venezuela “until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition”. He said US oil companies will fix Venezuela’s “broken infrastructure” and “start making money for the country”.

But in an address on state television, Venezuela’s Vice-President Delcy Rodríguez, who is being sworn in as head of state later on Monday, said Maduro is the country’s only president even as Trump had earlier shared a photo he said was of Maduro on board the USS Iwo Jima. The image showed him blindfolded and wearing ear defenders.

Maduro has been indicted in New York on drug and weapons charges. He has previously denied being the leader of a drug cartel despite the US placing a ransom of US$50 million on his head. Venezuela has since declared a national emergency, denouncing “extremely serious military aggression”.