January 3, 2026 UPDATE
The latest news from RRI
Newsroom, 03.01.2026, 20:00
Venezuela – The United States of America has successfully carried out a large-scale strike against Venezuela and its leader, President Nicolas Maduro, who has been, along with his wife, captured and flown out of the country” President Donald Trump said in a post on the Truth Social network. Trump announced that the United States would lead Venezuela until an ‘orderly and safe transition’ could take place in the country. He said the US was prepared to launch a second, larger attack if necessary. The US president also said that major US oil companies would exploit the country’s massive oil reserves, but that the embargo on Venezuelan oil would remain in place. On Saturday morning, Venezuelan authorities denounced a ‘very serious military aggression’ by the United States after powerful explosions occurred in Caracas during the night, and President Nicolas Maduro declared a state of emergency and called for mobilization. According to Maduro, the aim of this attack is to seize Venezuela’s strategic resources, especially oil and rare minerals. The Colombian President Gustavo Petro also denounced a missile attack on Caracas. He called for an immediate meeting of the Organization of American States and the UN to establish the ‘international legality’ of this aggression against the neighboring country.
Reactions – The Russian Foreign Ministry expressed concern and condemned an act of armed aggression against Venezuela committed by the United States. The Kremlin called for dialogue to prevent further escalation and find a way out of this situation. Iran also described the US military attack on Venezuela as a flagrant violation of its national sovereignty and territorial integrity, calling on the UN to act immediately to stop the illegal aggression and hold those responsible accountable. At the same time, a number of European leaders expressed concern about the situation in the South American state. The German, Spanish and Italian diplomats announced the formation of crisis units, and Madrid offered to act as a negotiator to help find a peaceful solution, while also demanding respect for international law in Venezuela. Following the announcement that the Venezuelan presidential couple had been captured and transported to the United States, US Attorney General Pam Bondi posted on the X platform that the Maduros were facing drug-related charges and “will soon face the full wrath of American justice on American soil.” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio reposted one of his an earlier posts on the same platform in which he said that “Maduro is NOT the president of Venezuela and his regime is NOT the legitimate government.” The US diplomat accuses Maduro of being the head of the Cartel de los Soles, a narco-terrorist organization that has taken control of Venezuela.
Opposition reaction – The Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, winner of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize, has conveyed a message following the capture of President Nicolas Maduro by the United States. “Venezuelans, the hour of freedom has arrived,” she wrote in a statement on social media. Machado added that Maduro was removed from power after refusing to negotiate a departure and called on the opposition candidate in the 2024 presidential election, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, currently in exile in Spain, to “immediately assume” the presidency. She also said the opposition would restore order in the country and free political prisoners.
Death toll – The death toll from the New Year’s Eve fire at Le Constellation bar in the Swiss resort of Crans Montana has risen to more than 40 dead and 120 injured. Swiss prosecutors said the fire most likely started from sparkling candles – or sparklers – which were put on bottles of champagne and moved too close to the ceiling. Investigations are currently underway to identify the culprits and bring them to law. In the meantime, all the bodies have been recovered, and authorities are now tasked with identifying them. Swiss, French, Italian, Serbian, Bosnian, Belgian and Portuguese nationals have been identified among the injured. The Romanian Foreign Ministry announced that the Romanian embassy in Bern is in contact with the family of a Romanian citizen presumed missing following the fire, and the National Committee for Emergency Situations has decided to make a medical transport aircraft available to Switzerland following the request made through the European Civil Protection Mechanism. It took off from Bucharest on Friday for Lausanne to transport six patients with serious burns to a hospital in Paris.
Reform – The Romanian Ministry of Development is to present, in a government meeting, the draft law on the reform of public administration at local and central levels. So far, it has been established that, at the level of local authorities, positions will be reduced by 20% to 30%. The relevant minister, Cseke Attila, stated that the reduction in the number of occupied positions will not affect local administrations where mayors do not have a very busy organizational chart with employees. Thus, at the level of approximately 700 administrative-territorial units, it will not be necessary to apply this percentage of reduction, because there are many vacant positions. At the central level, the governing coalition (PSD, PNL, USR, UDMR) agreed on a 10% reduction in expenses, but without affecting the level of basic salaries. Cseke Attila also said that these measures will save the state budget 3.5 – 4.5 billion lei (about 690 – 880 million Euros) annually, of which 1.7 billion (about 330 million Euros) at the local level. Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan announced that he wanted the government to assume responsibility in Parliament for this bill, so that he can use it to draft the budget for 2026.
Taxes – Taxes on buildings, land and cars have increased substantially since January 1st in Romania. For homes, taxes have been correlated with the market value of the property, and their level varies from one locality to another, depending on the decisions of local councils. These taxes have doubled and even tripled, in the case of Bucharest, for instance. In the case of cars, the novelty is the introduction of an annual tax of 40 lei for electric cars, which until now were exempt from taxes in many localities. Fuel, cigarettes and alcohol also became more expensive at the beginning of the year as a result of the 10% increase in excise duties. At the same time, each parcel whose value is less than 150 Euros coming from outside the European Union is now taxed with 25 lei, about 5 Euros.
Ukraine – National security advisers from 15 countries as well as representatives from the European Union and NATO met in Kyiv on Saturday to discuss diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine. A US team will join online, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said. He said the discussions would focus mainly on security guarantees that allies can offer Ukraine. The meeting comes ahead of a Coalition of the Willing summit in Paris next week. Ukraine has been defending itself against Russia’s invasion since February 2022, but despite weeks of negotiations on a possible peace deal, there is currently no end to the war in sight. (LS)
