CIA Hinted To Cuban Authorities About Maduro's Fate

• 23.05.2026, 8:55

The man who captured Venezuela's ex-head of state was taken to meet with Castro officials.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe staged a show of pressure on the Cuban leadership during a secret visit to Havana. He brought to the talks an operative who was directly involved in the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.

According to CBS News )

The rare meeting between U.S. intelligence and senior Cuban officials took place last week. Ratcliffe did not show up on his own, but brought with him one of the key players in the mission to capture Nicolas Maduro. This came as a real shock to the host, journalists' sources said.

Sources said the CIA director pressed the Cubans to introduce the leader of the militant group. Ratcliffe noted that this was the man who eliminated their men in Venezuela earlier this year.

The presence of such an officer was intended to send a clear message. The White House is no longer going to play by the old rules and will now act tough, the piece said.

Context of Maduro's capture

Venezuela and Cuba have long been close allies in the region. Maduro's arrest, however, changed all that. The January U.S. operation was bloody and the Cuban government officially acknowledged the losses.

The following were killed during Maduro's evacuation:

32 Cuban military;

Cuban police officers;

security personnel.

All of them were trying to protect the Venezuelan leader, now the man responsible for their elimination was sitting at the same table with the Cuban leadership in Havana. The CIA itself has traditionally declined to comment, the report summarized.