The United States is pushing Venezuela to curtail the presence of Russia, China, and Iran, US Secretary of State and National Security Advisor Marco Rubio said. "For the first time in 20 years, we're having serious conversations about eroding and eliminating the Iranian presence, the Chinese influence, the Russian presence as well. He actually acknowledged that Washington could not engage in such activities when Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was in Caracas. In his words, Venezuela, along with Cuba and Nicaragua, is Russia’s "primary presence of influence" in the Western Hemisphere. He also said that Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife had been captured and taken out of the country.