U.S. Seizes Second Venezuelan Government Plane in the Dominican Republic
The Trump administration on Thursday seized a second plane belonging to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s government, which was located in the Dominican Republic.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio personally oversaw the seizure during his visit to Santo Domingo, the final stop on his five-nation Latin American tour. American officials affixed the seizure warrant to the plane under his watch.
Executing the seizure required Rubio’s approval of a waiver to a foreign aid freeze imposed by President Donald Trump. The waiver allowed for payment of more than $230,000 in storage and maintenance fees, according to a State Department document obtained by The Associated Press. The U.S. Department of Justice also had to approve the action, citing the plane’s use by a Venezuelan state-owned oil and gas company under U.S. sanctions.
The aircraft, a Dassault Falcon 200, has been used by Maduro and his top aides, including the vice president and defense minister, for international travel to destinations such as Greece, Turkey, Russia, and Cuba—routes that the U.S. claims violate sanctions.
This seizure follows the Trump administration’s previous confiscation of another Maduro-linked jet in September 2024, also from the Dominican Republic. That aircraft, a Dassault Falcon 900EX valued at $13 million, was allegedly purchased through a Caribbean-based shell company to hide Maduro associates' involvement.
The latest move comes just a week after Trump’s special envoy, Richard Grenell, visited Caracas for talks with Maduro regarding the repatriation of Venezuelan nationals who entered the U.S. illegally. Grenell returned with six detained Americans from Venezuela.
Separately, during Rubio’s visit to Panama—his first stop on the tour—he clarified that the U.S. understands Panama’s legal process regarding waiving transit fees for U.S. warships in the Panama Canal. His remarks came after Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino denied reports that such an agreement had already been reached.
Trump has previously expressed frustration over Panama’s control of the canal, threatening to retake it unless the country limits Chinese influence in the region. Rubio echoed concerns about paying fees to transit the canal, noting that the U.S. has treaty obligations to protect it in times of conflict.
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