CNN, citing informed sources, reported that several months before the operation in Caracas, US authorities held talks with Venezuela’s Vice President Delcy Rodríguez and National Assembly Speaker Jorge Rodríguez.
US officials told members of Congress during a briefing that they had been in contact for months with Rodríguez as well as her brother. They noted that the aim of the negotiations was to encourage Venezuela’s leadership to change its behavior and that they were not related to providing support for overthrowing President Nicolás Maduro.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told lawmakers that Washington considers Rodríguez more pragmatic than Maduro and believes it is possible to work with her. According to CIA assessments, she is the most suitable official in Caracas to lead an interim government. Washington believes that Rodríguez would be able to exercise control over Venezuela’s security forces.
In addition, Rodríguez also serves as Venezuela’s oil minister, and the White House expects that she would cooperate in the restoration of the country’s oil infrastructure and, in the future, allow US companies to operate there.
However, according to CNN sources, there is still no official agreement with Rodríguez.
