President Trump gave Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro a chance to escape the country with his life — but he had to do it immediately, according to a bombshell report.

During a call between Trump  and Maduro last week, the South American dictator demanded that he be allowed to maintain control of the military and wanted global amnesty for all crimes, according to the Miami Herald, citing sources.

Trump’s response was reportedly blunt, and the talks quickly broke down. Maduro, his wife and son would be allowed to leave Venezuela safely, but they must do it immediately.

This handout picture released by the Venezuelan Presidency press office shows Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro (2nd-L) walking with the first lady of Venezuela, Cilia Flores, and Venezuela’s Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino (2nd-R) before a meeting with the high military command in Caracas on September 5, 2025. Venezuelan Presidency/AFP via Getty Images

Following the failed attempt to reach a detente, Trump announced he was closing the airspace around the South American country — as America’s largest warship, the USS Gerald Ford, and a Marine Expeditionary Unit — capable of amphibious invasion — float offshore.

Trump warned over the weekend that military operations inside Venezuela could begin “very soon.”

President Trump issued a stern warning to Maduro during a recent phone call, according to a report. AFP via Getty Images

The tense phone call reportedly took place late in the week of Nov. 16, according to the New York Times, just days after Trump said he was open to talking with Maduro. 

The call reportedly saw Trump and Maduro’s team go over the details of what a surrender from the Venezuelan strongman would be like, given that the state department has a bounty on his head for $50 million. 

“First, Maduro asked for global amnesty for any crimes he and his group had committed, and that was rejected,” a source familiar with the call told the Herald. 

“Second, they asked to retain control of the armed forces — similar to what happened in Nicaragua in ’91 with Violeta Chamorro. In return, they would allow free elections,” the source added. 

That proposal, however, was also rejected, along with the demand that Maduro resign immediately. 

A US sailor aboard the world’s largest aircraft carrier, Ford-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), mans an advanced arresting gear push bar on the flight deck during flight operations, Nov. 17, 2025. USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78)

The offer of amnesty was also extended to Maduro’s top allies, the Herald noted.

Following the breakdown, Trump ramped up pressure on Venezuela and warned that the US would target drug trafficking networks “by land” soon.

By Saturday, he made an announcement on social media that Venezuela’s airspace should be considered “closed in its entirety,” stoking fears of a looming war in the South American country of 28 million people.

Maduro and his allies condemned the move as a form of American “colonial” aggression, accusing the Trump administration of trying to use military force to seize the country’s vast oil reserves.   

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The US has been conducting a sea-focused campaign since September, striking alleged drug boats originating from Venezuela and other Latin American nations.

The administration has since carried out at least 21 fatal strikes on small boats.

In one such bombing, the US allegedly killed survivors after bombing a drug boat near Trinidad in a so-called “double tap” strike under orders from Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth to “kill everybody” — which the former Fox News contributor denies. 

Critics and human rights experts have slammed the bombings as extrajudicial executions, with Congress opening inquiries into the alleged “double tap” strike.