US President Donald Trump met Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez at the UN General Assembly— a first face‑to‑face encounter since the White House backed Rodríguez to assume control of the country after a U.S. raid on Caracas.
Rodríguez succeeded Nicolás Maduro shortly after U.S. forces seized him during the raid and has been sworn in by the Venezuelan National Assembly with the White House’s blessing.
The meeting took place a few kilometres from the New York jail where Maduro awaits trial on drug trafficking and other charges.
The agenda for the talks centred on cooperation in strategic areas, notably energy, mining and security, as the two leaders sought ways to strengthen ties.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles attended the meeting, underscoring Washington’s keen interest in the outcomes.
Rodríguez’s government recently signed a deal granting U.S. companies control over more than 65 billion barrels of Venezuela’s oil—an estimate that represents roughly one‑fifth of the nation’s reserves—alongside a 100‑year concession on 17 oilfields.
During his address to the UN on Monday, Trump proclaimed the deal to be “the biggest oil deal in world history” and stated that the U.S. and Venezuela together control “more than 60 % of the world’s oil.”
Rodríguez is scheduled to address the UN on Wednesday, where she will outline her priorities and reaffirm her role as interim president.
The sanctions imposed on Rodríguez in 2018 were lifted earlier this year, paving the way for this historic diplomatic engagement and signaling a new phase in U.S.-Venezuela relations.
Meanwhile, Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado has repeatedly been barred from re‑entering the country, highlighting ongoing political tensions.
