Opposition leader Machado says she will not obstruct talks
Machado says she will not stand in the way of Caracas negotiations
In his statement, published Sunday, Maduro called for August to become a month of “sincere dialogue,” solidarity and achievements aimed at a “national rebirth” based on mutual respect, inclusion and democratic coexistence, according to United Press International. Under federal prison regulations, an external team — typically including his attorneys, son Nicolás Maduro Guerra and political allies from the ruling socialist movement — receives his messages, prepares them for publication and posts them on his social media accounts.
The talks formally began Saturday with initial institutional and coordination contacts between Rodríguez and Figuera. In-person negotiations are expected to take place in Caracas this week, with the aim of establishing a formal electoral timetable.
Machado, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who is not directly participating in the negotiations, said she would not obstruct the talks, UPI reported.
Maduro, 63, is held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where he has been held since U.S. authorities arrested him and his wife, Cilia Flores, in January 2026 on drug trafficking and weapons trafficking charges. He is allowed about 510 minutes of supervised telephone calls each month with preapproved contacts, including immediate family members and his legal team. Individual calls are limited to 15 minutes.