Inauguration of Venezuela's Maduro Draws International Condemnation

People in Caracas, Venezuela rest on stairs featuring a mosaic portraying the eyes of the country's late president Hugo Chavez during the inauguration of his successor, President Nicolas Maduro, for a third term. Betty Laura Zapata / AFP
People in Caracas, Venezuela rest on stairs featuring a mosaic portraying the eyes of the country's late president Hugo Chavez during the inauguration of his successor, President Nicolas Maduro, for a third term. Betty Laura Zapata / AFP
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Inauguration of Venezuela's Maduro Draws International Condemnation

People in Caracas, Venezuela rest on stairs featuring a mosaic portraying the eyes of the country's late president Hugo Chavez during the inauguration of his successor, President Nicolas Maduro, for a third term. Betty Laura Zapata / AFP
People in Caracas, Venezuela rest on stairs featuring a mosaic portraying the eyes of the country's late president Hugo Chavez during the inauguration of his successor, President Nicolas Maduro, for a third term. Betty Laura Zapata / AFP

Nicolas Maduro's inauguration on Friday for a third term as Venezuela's president drew widespread admonishment from countries that have accused him of stealing the July election.
The defiant 62-year-old leader, who has shrugged off allegations of electoral fraud and insisted he won another six-year term, was also congratulated by states that have maintained support for his controversial government.
Here are the main reactions to Maduro taking the oath of office in Caracas.
United States
Washington hiked its reward for information leading to Maduro's arrest to $25 million on Friday.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement that Maduro "clearly lost" last year's election and called the swearing-in ceremony "an illegitimate presidential inauguration."
In a separate announcement, the US Treasury Department said it was sanctioning eight senior officials who lead "key economic and security agencies enabling Nicolas Maduro's repression and subversion of democracy in Venezuela."
On Thursday, incoming US president Donald Trump defended Venezuela's opposition party leader and its exiled presidential candidate as "freedom fighters."
European Union
The EU said Friday that Maduro was not Venezuela's legitimate president.
Foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said "Maduro lacks all democratic legitimacy," as Brussels announced sanctions on a further 15 officials from Venezuela's National Electoral Council, judiciary and security forces.
Britain UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said Maduro's "claim to power is fraudulent," as London also announced further sanctions on individuals associated with the Caracas government.
"The outcome of July's elections was neither free nor fair and his regime does not represent the will of the Venezuelan people," Lammy said.
United Nations
UN chief Antonio Guterres called Friday for Venezuelan authorities to release all those who have been "arbitrarily detained" since the elections.
"The Secretary-General strongly condemns the detention of a large number of persons, including opposition figures, journalists and human rights defenders since the July 28 presidential elections," spokesman Stephane Dujarric told reporters.
Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Maduro on his swearing-in, according to the lower house of parliament.
Lower house speaker Vyacheslav Volodin, who attended Maduro's inauguration in Caracas on behalf of Putin, "conveyed congratulations from Russia's head of state", it said in a statement.
- Regional states -
In a sign of Maduro's pariah status, only two leaders -- Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and Nicaraguan president and ex-guerrilla Daniel Ortega -- attended his inauguration.
Traditional left-wing allies, including Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, pointedly stayed away from the ceremony.



Russia's Lavrov Warns against Any New US Strike on Iran

FILE PHOTO: Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks during an annual press conference in Moscow, Russia, January 14, 2025. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks during an annual press conference in Moscow, Russia, January 14, 2025. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina/File Photo
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Russia's Lavrov Warns against Any New US Strike on Iran

FILE PHOTO: Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks during an annual press conference in Moscow, Russia, January 14, 2025. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks during an annual press conference in Moscow, Russia, January 14, 2025. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina/File Photo

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in ‌an interview made public on Wednesday, said that any new US strike on Iran would have serious consequences and called for restraint to find a solution to enable Iran to pursue a peaceful nuclear program.

Lavrov's interview with Saudi Arabia's Al-Arabiya television was aired a day after US and Iranian negotiators held indirect talks in Geneva to head off a new mounting crisis between Washington and Tehran, Reuters said.

"The consequences are not good. There have already been strikes on Iran on ‌nuclear sites ‌under the control of the International Atomic ‌Energy ⁠Agency. From what ⁠we can judge there were real risks of a nuclear incident," Lavrov said in the interview, which was posted on his ministry's website.

"I am carefully watching reactions in the region from Arab countries, Gulf monarchies. No one wants an increase in tension. Everyone understands this is playing with fire."

Boosting ⁠tensions, he said, could undo the ‌positive steps of recent years, including ‌improved relations between Iran and nearby countries, notably Saudi Arabia.

A senior ‌US official told Reuters on Wednesday that Iran was ‌expected to submit a written proposal on how to resolve its standoff with the United States after the talks in Geneva.

US national security advisers met in the White House on Wednesday and ‌were told all US military forces deployed to the region should be in place ⁠by mid-March, ⁠the official said.

The United States wants Iran to give up its nuclear program, and Iran has adamantly refused and denied it is trying to develop an atomic weapon.

Lavrov said Arab countries were sending signals to Washington "clearly calling for restraint and a search for an agreement that will not infringe on Iran's lawful rights and ... guarantee that Iran has a purely peaceful nuclear enrichment program".

Russia, he said, remained in close, regular contact with Iran's leaders "and we have no reason to doubt that Iran sincerely wants to resolve this problem on the basis of observing the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty".


AI Cannot Be Left to 'Whims of a Few Billionaires', UN Chief Says

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during a welcoming ceremony at AI Impact Summit, in New Delhi, India, February 18, 2026. India's Press Information Bureau/Handout via REUTERS
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during a welcoming ceremony at AI Impact Summit, in New Delhi, India, February 18, 2026. India's Press Information Bureau/Handout via REUTERS
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AI Cannot Be Left to 'Whims of a Few Billionaires', UN Chief Says

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during a welcoming ceremony at AI Impact Summit, in New Delhi, India, February 18, 2026. India's Press Information Bureau/Handout via REUTERS
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres during a welcoming ceremony at AI Impact Summit, in New Delhi, India, February 18, 2026. India's Press Information Bureau/Handout via REUTERS

UN chief Antonio Guterres warned technology leaders Thursday of the risks of artificial intelligence, saying its future cannot be left to "the whims of a few billionaires".

Speaking at a global AI summit in India, the UN chief called on tech tycoons to support a $3 billion global fund to ensure open access to the fast-advancing technology for all.

"AI must belong to everyone," he said.

"The future of AI cannot be decided by a handful of countries -- or left to the whims of a few billionaires," he added, warning the world risked deepening inequality unless urgent steps were taken.

"Done right, AI can... accelerate breakthroughs in medicine, expand learning opportunities, strengthen food security, bolster climate action and disaster preparedness and improve access to vital public services," he said.

"But it can also deepen inequality, amplify bias and fuel harm."

The UN has set up an AI scientific advisory body to help countries make decisions about the revolutionary technology.

Guterres warned that people must be protected from exploitation, and that "no child should be a test subject for unregulated AI".

He pressed for global guardrails to ensure oversight and accountability, and the creation of "Global Fund on AI" to build basic capacity.

"Our target is $3 billion," he told the conference, which includes national leaders as well as tech CEOs, including Sam Altman of OpenAI and Google's Sundar Pichai.

"That's less than one percent of the annual revenue of a single tech company. A small price for AI diffusion that benefits all, including the businesses building AI."

Without investment, "many countries will be logged out of the AI age", exacerbating global divides, he said.

He also cautioned that as AI's energy and water demands soar, data centers must switch to clean power, rather than "shift costs to vulnerable communities".


US Military Tells Trump It's ‘Ready’ to Strike Iran as Soon as Saturday

A shot showing personnel preparations aboard the US aircraft carrier "Gerald Ford" (US Navy)
A shot showing personnel preparations aboard the US aircraft carrier "Gerald Ford" (US Navy)
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US Military Tells Trump It's ‘Ready’ to Strike Iran as Soon as Saturday

A shot showing personnel preparations aboard the US aircraft carrier "Gerald Ford" (US Navy)
A shot showing personnel preparations aboard the US aircraft carrier "Gerald Ford" (US Navy)

Top national security officials have told US President Donald Trump the military is ready for potential strikes on Iran as soon as Saturday, but the timeline for any action is likely to extend beyond this weekend, sources familiar with the discussions told CBS News.

Trump has not yet made a final decision about whether to strike, said the officials, who spoke under condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive national matters.

The conversations have been described as fluid and ongoing, as the White House weighs the risks of escalation and the political and military consequences of restraint, added CBS.

Over the next three days, the Pentagon is moving some personnel temporarily out of the Middle East region — primarily to Europe or back to the United States — ahead of potential action or counterattacks by Iran if the US were to move ahead with its operation, according to multiple officials.

It's standard practice for the Pentagon to shift assets and personnel ahead of a potential US military activity and doesn't necessarily signal an attack on Iran is imminent, one of the sources told CBS.

Contacted by CBS News on Wednesday afternoon, a Pentagon spokesperson said they had no information to provide.

Iran was discussed in the White House Situation Room on Wednesday, a US official and a senior military official told CBS News. All military forces deployed to the region are expected to be in place by mid-March.

Axios had also said that a war between the United States and Iran is looming — and there are several factors suggesting President Trump might push the button soon.

On Wednesday, Iran's top diplomat Abbas Araghchi said that Tehran was "drafting" a framework for future talks with the United States, as the US energy secretary said Washington would stop Iran's nuclear ambitions "one way or another".