Venezuela's Maduro heads to New York, Trump says open to meeting

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on Wednesday he is willing to meet with US President Donald Trump and to speak about anything the US government wants to discuss.

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."

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He said that "all options" were available to find a solution to Venezuela's ballooning economic and political crisis, which has fuelled an exodus to nearby Latin American countries.

"All options are on the table, everyone," 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.

Maduro frequently accuses the United States of seeking to sabotage his administration by fomenting an economic crisis and stoking unrest.

(With inputs from Reuters)