Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro pleaded not guilty on Monday to all charges brought against him by the United States during his first court appearance in New York.
“I am innocent. I am not guilty,” Maduro told the court, according to reporters present at the hearing. He claimed he had been forcibly taken from his home in Caracas and said he continues to consider himself Venezuela’s legitimate president.
Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, who is also facing U.S. charges, told the court that she is completely innocent.
The next hearing in the case against Maduro is scheduled for March 17.
Outside the courthouse, demonstrators gathered to protest the proceedings, chanting slogans and holding signs reading “Free Maduro,” “No War on Venezuela,” and “U.S. Hands Off Venezuela.”
According to U.S. authorities, Maduro and his wife were taken into custody following a military operation carried out in the early hours of Saturday in Caracas and other parts of Venezuela, after which they were transferred to New York.
The operation has drawn strong international reaction, prompting criticism and expressions of concern from governments and organizations around the world.