But even after the White House denied a meeting would take place, the now-slighted Maduro kept flying north, all brashness and bluster. He seemed totally unconcerned about the calls on Wednesday from six countries — Argentina, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay and Peru — for the International Criminal Court to probe him for crimes against humanity. He tweeted a photo of himself aboard the plane, saying he intended to “bring the truth” about Venezuela to the United Nations. He made a point of saying he was accompanied by his wife, Cilia Flores, who was sanctioned Tuesday by the U.S. Treasury, which also seized a plane belonging to a Maduro ally.<doc-sep>UNITED NATIONS — Embattled Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro traveled to the U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday to "defend his country" as six nations accused him of crimes against humanity and President Donald Trump hinted at taking strong action. The surprise visit came after Maduro had earlier threatened to skip the global gathering, citing fears for his personal safety as his once-wealthy OPEC nation spirals into a brutal crisis and international pressure mounts for the socialist leader to step down. Maduro confirmed in a video broadcast on Venezuelan state television that he was on his way to defend Venezuela, giving voice to his country on the global stage. "Today we're stronger than ever," a buoyant Maduro said on a flight from Caracas. "I come filled with emotion, passion." It appeared unlikely, however, that Maduro would cross paths with Trump, despite the U.S. president's comments earlier in the day that he was willing to meet with his Venezuelan counterpart if it would help ease suffering in the South American nation. "I'm willing to meet with anybody anytime I can (to) save lives, help people," Trump said as he was pummeled by reporters' questions about whether the U.S. would ever intervene military to remove Maduro. On Wednesday, presidents from five conservative Latin American governments and Canada's prime minister met in New York and signed a complaint with the International Criminal Court asking it to investigate Maduro on charges of crimes against humanity. It's the first time that member countries have referred another country to the Netherlands-based U.N. court. They point to a human rights report accusing Venezuelan security forces of carrying out arbitrary arrests, murders, extrajudicial executions, torture, sexual abuse and rape on orders from Maduro's government. "To remain indifferent or speculative in front of this reality could be perceived as being complicit with the regime," said Paraguayan Foreign Minister Andres Rodriguez Pedotti. "We are not going to be complicit." Venezuela's ousted chief prosecutor, Luisa Ortega, meanwhile, called on the United States to advantage of Maduro's visit to arrest him on charges of organized crime, corruption and genocide. Maduro's trip came a day after the Trump administration imposed financial sanctions on four members of his inner circle, including his wife and Venezuela's vice president, on allegations of corruption. Trump also suggested Maduro could be easily toppled in a military coup, echoing comments first floated last year that some sort of "military solution" might be needed to restore Venezuela's democracy. The newly sanctioned first lady, Cilia Flores, accompanied Maduro to New York. Maduro has been seeking a meeting with Trump for almost two years and has watched with frustration as the U.S. leader has talked with American adversaries like North Korea's Kim Jong Un and Russia's Vladimir Putin while shunning Venezuelan entreaties. Citgo, a subsidiary of Venezuela's state-owned oil company, was a major corporate donor to Trump's inaugural committee. Maduro also this year freed a former Utah missionary jailed for more than two years on weapons charges in a bid to improve relations with the White House. His desire for some sort of reconciliation with the U.S. has increased as international pressure has been building on his socialist government at a time of hyperinflation and widespread food and medicine shortages. An estimated 2.3 million Venezuelans have fled into neighboring countries in the last four years, threatening to upset regional stability. Maduro has not attended the U.N. General Assembly since 2015 and said last week that he might have to suspend his participation this year out of concerns his opponents would try to kill him if he traveled abroad. Trump said Wednesday that all U.S. options are on the table to help end the political, economic and humanitarian chaos in Venezuela — even the "strong ones." "I just want to see Venezuela straightened out. I want the people to be safe. We're going to take care of Venezuela," he said, calling Venezuela's situation a disgrace.<doc-sep>However, some former officials defended the meetings, arguing that something must be done to stem the humanitarian crises set off by Mr. Maduro’s authoritarian leadership, from shortages of food and medicine to the migration of millions of Venezuelans from the country. “If you don’t like the idea of the U.S. talking to the military, then what do you propose?” said Richard N. Haass, a former top State Department official in the George W. Bush administration who is now the president of the Council on Foreign Relations. He said that while he did not support a coup, the region should consider a “Latin American coalition of the willing,” an alliance of Venezuela’s neighbors created for a possible regional military intervention, similar to the United States’ invasion of Iraq. While Latin American leaders loudly condemned remarks by President Trump last year saying there was a “military option” to thwart Mr. Maduro, the reaction to the news that American officials had met with coup plotters was muted this time. Mr. Morales was the only president who came to the defense of Mr. Maduro. That reflects the growing exasperation with Mr. Maduro’s government, some experts say. “There is so little sympathy now,” said Michael Shifter, the president of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington policy forum. While Mr. Shifter does not support a coup either, he said comparisons to the overthrow in Chile of Salvador Allende in 1973 by Gen. Augusto Pinochet, who became a military dictator, were unfounded, given the humanitarian crisis Mr. Maduro had caused. There are signs that the Trump administration may harden its stance toward Mr. Maduro, one of the few sitting presidents currently under sanctions imposed by the United States. The White House is expected to name Mauricio Claver-Carone to head Latin America affairs at the National Security Council. Mr. Claver-Carone is considered a conservative hard-liner on Cuba and was involved in tightening American sanctions against Venezuelan officials. He would report to John Bolton, who came to lead the N.S.C. in April and is also seen as more hawkish than his predecessor.<doc-sep>
By Michelle Nichols and Alexandra Ulmer UNITED NATIONS/CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro headed for New York on Wednesday to attend the United Nations General Assembly and U.S. President Donald Trump said he would be open to meeting the socialist leader of the crisis-stricken South American nation. Venezuela's government had not previously said whether Maduro would attend the U.N. meeting. Maduro said last week he might not attend, adding "they have me in their sights to kill me" without specifying who might target him. The White House said no meeting was planned between the two leaders, and Venezuela's information ministry did not respond to a request for comment. Trump's comments earlier on Wednesday suggested he could meet Maduro, who has been publicly seeking a sit-down with Trump, his ideological foe, since last year. "I would certainly be open to it, I'm willing to meet with anybody," Trump said as he arrived at the United Nations headquarters. "We're going to take care of Venezuela, if he's here and he wants to meet, it was not on my mind, it was not on my plate, but if I can help people that's what I'm here for." He said that "all options" were available to find a solution to Venezuela's ballooning economic and political crisis, which has fueled an exodus to nearby Latin American countries. "All options are on the table, every one," Trump told reporters. "The strong ones and the less than strong ones - and you know what I mean by strong. Every option is on the table with respect to Venezuela." The White House last year said a meeting with Maduro would happen when Venezuela returned to democracy. A group of Latin American countries and Canada said earlier on Wednesday they had asked the International Criminal Court to investigate Maduro's government over allegations of crimes against humanity in its use of force to repress political opponents. Maduro was due to speak at the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations later on Wednesday. "I am landing in New York to defend the truth of Venezuela, to bring the voice of our fatherland," said Maduro in a video posted on Twitter showing him and his wife Cilia Flores - whom the United States sanctioned on Tuesday - in the presidential plane. He did not mention Trump in the video. Maduro frequently accuses the United States of seeking to sabotage his administration by fomenting an economic crisis and stoking unrest. The Trump administration and many Latin American government, however, blame Venezuela's economic meltdown on reckless money printing, dysfunctional currency controls and poor management by Maduro's administration. Inflation is running at 200,000 percent and basic foods and medicines, like rice and antibiotics, are increasingly difficult to obtain. (Additional reporting by Doina Chiacu and Vivian Sequera; Editing by James Dalgleish)