CARACAS, March 28 (Xinhua) -- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said Saturday in a social media post that he and his wife, Cilia Flores, are "well, firm and calm," two days after a court hearing in New York.

Supporters of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro protest outside a courthouse in New York, the United States, March 26, 2026. Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro made his second appearance Thursday morning in a New York court after his forcible seizure by U.S. troops in a military raid in Caracas early January. (Xinhua/Zhang Fengguo)

In a first-person message posted on his official Telegram and X accounts, Maduro and Flores said that "now more than ever," it is necessary to "continue consolidating the country's peace, national unity, reconciliation, forgiveness and reunification among all."

"No one should deviate from the path of dialogue, coexistence and respect," the couple said in the message, their first public statement since their capture in Caracas in January.

On Jan. 3, U.S. military forces launched a large-scale operation against Venezuela and forcibly seized Maduro and his wife before transporting them to New York.

On Jan. 5, Maduro made his first court appearance in New York, where he pleaded not guilty to all U.S. charges against him.

Maduro appeared again before the same court on Thursday, where the judge denied his motion to dismiss the case.