Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López accused the United States of fabricating "false positives" and spreading misinformation through its communication apparatus to justify plans to aggress against Venezuela. These allegations come amid recent U.S. troop deployments in the Caribbean for anti-drug operations. The Venezuelan government expressed gratitude to the Group of Friends in Defense of the United Nations Charter for their rejection of U.S. military threats against Venezuela. Meanwhile, Colombia's President Gustavo Petro raised concerns about deliberate efforts to undermine the normalization of relations with Venezuela. The U.S. has confiscated over $700 million in assets linked to Nicolás Maduro, including airplanes and mansions in the U.S. and the Dominican Republic, accusing him of leading the Cartel of the Suns. Opposition groups in Venezuela, such as Vente Venezuela and Voluntad Popular, have denounced the deteriorating health of detained journalists Víctor Ugas and Gabriel González, who have been imprisoned for one year and 14 months respectively, and demanded information on the whereabouts of activist José Riera, detained for 21 days. The Latin American Association of Sociology condemned the criminalization of Venezuelan academics accused by official media of political interference. Puerto Rican sociologist Ramón Grosfoguel criticized a document aimed at undermining support for Venezuela, questioning the motives behind it. Additionally, former U.S. President Donald Trump has been reported to pursue actions to pressure Nicolás Maduro's exit from power, including ambiguous moves ranging from prisoner exchanges to military threats.