Demonstrators gathered outside a New York federal court on Monday, protesting against the U.S. seizure and criminal indictment of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Protesters held Venezuelan flags and placards, and called for the release of Maduro.
The Venezuelan president made his first court appearance Monday morning in New York after he was captured by U.S. forces in Venezuela on Saturday, along with his wife Cilia Flores.
Maduro pleaded not guilty to all U.S. charges during his first court appearance in New York.
"I am innocent, I am not guilty," Maduro told the court, adding that he was seized at his home in Caracas and that he remains the president of Venezuela, according to media inside the courtroom.
Cilia Flores said at court that she is completely innocent of the charges brought against her by the United States, according to media reports.
The next hearing on the case against Maduro is scheduled for March 17.
In the early hours of Saturday, U.S. military forces carried out attacks and bombings in Caracas and other parts of Venezuela and took Maduro and his wife by force, before putting them in custody in New York.
Protesters gather outside court to urge US to free Maduro
Protesters gather outside court to urge US to free Maduro
China's two major power grid operators -- the State Grid Corporation of China (State Grid) and China Southern Power Grid (CSG) -- reported a surge in investment in the first quarter of 2026, underscoring efforts to strengthen infrastructure construction and support high-quality socioeconomic development in China.
The State Grid said it completed fixed-asset investment worth 129 billion yuan (about 18.77 billion U.S. dollars) in the first three months of this year, up 37 percent the corresponding period of the previous year. The spending has driven more than 250 billion yuan (36 billion U.S. dollars) of investment across the wider industrial chain.
Key projects such as the Panxi ultra-high-voltage (UHV) alternating current (AC) line and the Anhui-Hubei back-to-back direct current (DC) project have seen ground broken for their construction, while several west-to-east power transmission projects have been upgraded.
Investment in connecting renewable energy generation to the grid was reported to have exceeded 10 billion yuan (1.45 billion U.S. dollars) from January to March, a year-on-year rise of more than 50 percent.
The CSG also reported robust growth in investment in the three-month period, with fixed-asset investment reaching 38.45 billion yuan (5.58 billion U.S. dollars), up about 50 percent from a year earlier.
Among its achievements, the company completed and commissioned 80 key projects, including the 220 kV cross-sea power grid interconnection project, which was officially put into operation on March 20. The project ended years of grid isolation on the Weizhou Island in south China by linking it to the main power system of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.
The construction of 17 other major energy projects, including one linking the power grid of the Xizang Autonomous Region in southwest China with that of Guangdong Province in south China, is advancing rapidly. These projects are expected to bolster regional industries, the maritime economy, digital collaboration and the transition to green energy.
"By accelerating major project construction, investment during the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030) is expected to approach 1 trillion yuan (145 billion U.S. dollars), driving a further 2 trillion yuan (290 billion U.S. dollars) of investment across upstream and downstream industries," said Dong Yanle, deputy general manager of the Engineering Construction Department under the China Southern Power Grid.
China ramps up power grid investment in January-March to boost growth
