The Trump administration sent a flight carrying deportees from the United States to Venezuela on Sunday, marking the first such flight since an agreement was reached between the two governments to resume deportations.
Diosdado Cabello, Venezuela’s interior minister, invited journalists to an airport near Caracas for the flight's arrival, which the government dubbed the Return to the Homeland. The Department of Homeland Security confirmed that the deportation flight had landed, carrying 199 individuals.
The Trump administration has prioritized securing Venezuelan government cooperation for deportation flights, especially as a significant number of Venezuelans have migrated to the U.S. in recent years. President Trump pledged during his campaign to carry out mass deportations of migrants.
Limited diplomatic relations with Nicolás Maduro's regime have hindered regular deportation flights to Venezuela. After briefly accepting flights following Trump's inauguration, Maduro halted them weeks ago after the administration revoked a policy allowing increased oil production and exports from Venezuela.
Under pressure from the Trump administration, Secretary of State Marco Rubio warned of new, severe sanctions if Venezuela did not accept repatriated citizens. Subsequently, the Venezuelan government announced its willingness to resume flights.
This decision may also be linked to the situation of Venezuelan migrants sent to a prison in El Salvador by the Trump administration, which invoked the Alien Enemies Act to facilitate their transfer. The conditions in the Salvadoran prison have been criticized by human rights experts.
A Venezuelan government representative stated, “Migration isn’t a crime, and we will not rest until we achieve the return of all of those in need and rescue our brothers kidnapped in El Salvador.”
The deportees were not flown directly to Venezuela; instead, they were first taken to Soto Cano air base in Honduras, a site previously used for deportation transfers. A plane from the Venezuelan state airline, Conviasa, was scheduled to arrive at Soto Cano for the handoff.
Honduran officials did not immediately confirm the transfer, but the deputy foreign minister indicated that Honduras would assist as a humanitarian bridge for friendly governments.
While it was unclear how many individuals were on the flight, both the U.S. and Venezuelan planes can each accommodate over 200 people. This flight represents only the fourth time Venezuelan officials have agreed to accept deportation flights since Trump took office.
Previous flights included two Conviasa planes that picked up nearly 200 migrants from Texas in February, and a subsequent flight that transferred 177 Venezuelans from Guantánamo to Soto Cano for handoff to Venezuelan authorities.