Rubio Says Venezuelan Government a Transshipment Organization for Drug Trafficking

Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks during a meeting with Ukrainian officials in Hallandale Beach, Fla., on Nov. 30, 2025. AP Photo/Terry RennaSecretary of State Marco Rubio accused Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro of not having a legitimate government and called the regime a “transshipment organization” to traffic drugs sourced in neighboring Colombia into other countries.“The Maduro regime is not a legitimate government,” Rubio told Fox News host Sean Hannity during a Tuesday evening interview. “What it is is a transshipment organization. It allows cocaine and other drugs that are produced in Colombia to be trafficked through Venezuelan territory and—with the cooperation of elements of the regime—are allowed to … leave Venezuela on airplanes and ships headed towards the United States.”