Turkey would make the perfect place of exile for Venezuela’s president Nicolas Maduro, an unnamed person familiar with the Trump administration’s thinking over the US operations taking place around the South American country told The Washington Post on November 27.

Maduro trusts Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, while Erdogan has good relations with US President Donald Trump, the source was also cited as saying, adding: “At the end of day, what are realistic and acceptable outcomes? Obviously, people are thinking about it, working on it.”

Trump’s deputy spokesperson Anna Kelly, meanwhile, responded with a “no comment” when asked by media whether exiling Maduro to Turkey was under discussion.

Venezuela, meanwhile, denied that Maduro was considering exile.

“Brothers”

The Post article noted that Erdogan was one of the few world leaders who congratulated Maduro after he declared victory in the Venezuelan elections held in July 2024. The US and more than 50 of its allies, on the other hand, declared that the poll was fraudulent.

Maduro and Erdogan call each other “brother”, the report also observed.

Trump ‘shuts down’ Venezuela’s airspace

On November 28, The New York Times reported multiple people as saying that Trump late last week held a phone call with Maduro. On November 29, Trump said that the airspace around Venezuela should be considered closed, prompting Caracas to say that the US was making a “colonialist threat”.

Trump has accused Maduro of many things, including the operating of “terrorist” cartels. Democratic lawmakers and some Republicans have questioned the veracity of Trump’s accusations.

Turkey seen as best fit for Maduro

In addition to Erdogan, Maduro is also on good terms with Cuba, Russia, China and Iran, The Washington Post said.

However, according to the newspaper, Turkey is seen as the best fit for Maduro.

US officials in the past have alleged that gold sent from Venezuela to Turkey for refining has found its way to Iran and into Turkish accounts personally held by Maduro and other regime officials.

Erdogan has this year helped Trump convince Hamas in Gaza to surrender, while, as a president who is able to get on the phone to Vladimir Putin, he has been relied upon for favours in addressing the Russia-Ukraine conflict and matters in relation to Syria.