Trump and Venezuela's interim president meet at UN for first time

Oil concessions and Maduro’s drug trial frame the new encounter

President Donald Trump met Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodríguez on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, in their first face-to-face encounter since the White House threw its support behind Rodríguez to take over the South American country’s government following the removal of Nicolás Maduro.

Rodríguez succeeded Maduro shortly after US forces conducted a raid on the Venezuelan capital Caracas and seized him, according to the BBC. The meeting took place a few kilometres from the New York jail where Maduro awaits trial on drug trafficking and other charges; a trial date has been set for next June.

The Venezuelan leader said the two presidents discussed “advancing a cooperation agenda in strategic areas such as energy, mining, and security.” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles also attended the meeting.

The encounter follows an August agreement between Rodríguez’s government and a US-led company that grants 100-year concessions over 17 oilfields containing more than 65 billion barrels of Venezuelan oil — more than a fifth of the country’s reserves. Trump has described the arrangement as “the biggest oil deal in world history.”

During his address to the UN on Monday, Trump said the US and Venezuela together control “more than 60%” of the world’s oil, adding: “To the victor belong the spoils.” Rodríguez is scheduled to address the General Assembly on Wednesday.

Rodríguez previously served as Maduro’s vice-president and was sanctioned by the US in 2018; the measures were lifted in April. She was sworn in as interim president by Venezuela’s National Assembly days after the US raid, with the White House’s blessing.

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado has repeatedly been barred from re-entering the country, according to the BBC.

The Trump-Rodríguez meeting builds on the August announcement of the oil concession deal, under which a US-led joint venture received 100-year concessions on 17 oilfields holding more than 65 billion barrels. As MSI previously reported, Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the agreement as “a huge win” and said it would bring nearly $100 billion in private investment.