UNIPA News(Havana)29 March-Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, published a joint three-part message this Saturday through Maduro’s X (formerly Twitter) account, two days after their second court hearing in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
The text, signed by both and addressed to the Venezuelan people and “men and women of goodwill around the world,” is the first joint public statement since the hearing held last Thursday before Judge Alvin Hellerstein.
”Your communications, messages, emails, letters, and prayers have reached us. Every word of love, every gesture of affection, and every expression of support fills our souls and strengthens us spiritually. We are well, firm, serene, and in permanent prayer,” they wrote.
The message—posted from New York, where both have been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn since January 3, 2026—also included a call for national reconciliation.
”Today more than ever, we call to continue consolidating the peace of the country, national unity, reconciliation, forgiveness, and the reunion of everyone.”
They further expressed: “May no one stray from the path of dialogue, coexistence, and respect, because that is the path of the Fatherland; that is the path of good.”
During the hearing, Maduro showed visible signs of nervousness and tics that provoked laughter in the courtroom, in contrast to the more composed demeanor of his wife, Cilia Flores. At the conclusion of the session, Maduro shook hands with his lawyer and said, “Until tomorrow,” before being escorted away.
On the same day the message was published, Maduro’s son, Nicolás Maduro Guerra—a deputy of the Venezuelan National Assembly who is also included in the U.S. Prosecutor’s indictment—stated in an interview with RT that there is nothing indicating Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores committed a crime, labeling the process a “political trial.”
Maduro and Flores face charges of conspiracy for narco-terrorism, conspiracy to import cocaine, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess weapons of war, carrying a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
Last Thursday, President Donald Trump stated that the current charges are only a fraction of Maduro’s crimes and anticipated additional indictments against him and other Venezuelan officials.
Congresswoman María Elvira Salazar expressed satisfaction with the progress of the case, stating: “In the end, all dictators end up being held accountable.”
Gluver Alexander Zaldívar González
Havana, Cuba
