US President Donald Trump posted a Truth Social image showing Venezuela covered with a U.S. flag and labeled "51st State" while he was traveling to China. [1, 2, 3, 4]
The post came a day after Trump told Fox News he was considering making Venezuela the 51st U.S. state. Reports on the interview differed on whether he described the idea as being "seriously considering" it or simply considering it. [1, 2, 3, 5, 4, 6]
Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, rejected the idea and said the country had never thought about becoming a U.S. state. She said, "从未考虑过成为美国的第51个州," and added that Venezuela would not accept such a proposal because the country values its independence. [1, 2, 7, 8, 3, 9, 5, 10, 11, 4, 6]
Rodriguez also said Caracas was pursuing a diplomatic and cooperation agenda with Washington. Several reports said she was in The Hague for International Court of Justice hearings tied to the Venezuela-Guyana territorial dispute over Essequibo, a resource-rich region that both countries claim. [7, 8, 9, 10, 11]
The dispute has sharpened against the backdrop of warmer ties between the two countries. Multiple reports said Venezuela and the United States restored diplomatic relations in March, and that Rodriguez has opened Venezuela's mining and oil sectors to foreign companies, especially U.S. firms. [8, 9, 10, 11, 4]
Trump also told Fox News he was considering the idea, and one report said he later promised to work to free all Venezuelan political prisoners and praised Rodriguez, saying in Spanish, "我们会把他们都救出来。而且我告诉你，德尔西（罗德里格斯名字）做得非常出色。" [4, 12]
The Venezuela opposition continues to demand elections, while Rodriguez said on May 1 that she did not know when they would be held and said they would come "some time." [1, 2, 8, 9, 5, 10, 11, 4]
