Opposition leader Machado’s three return attempts to Venezuela failed
The Tuesday evening meeting at a luxury hotel in Manhattan produced the most visible sign yet of Delcy Rodríguez’s transformation from Maduro’s longtime deputy to Washington’s partner in Caracas. Rodríguez, who was under U.S. sanctions until recently, flashed a peace sign as President Trump grinned with a thumbs-up—a striking image of the unlikely alliance that has taken shape since the U.S. military raid that captured her former boss in January.
“Delcy met with the one person who has given her legitimacy,” said James Story, a former U.S. ambassador to Venezuela. “It’s a win for her to be on the international stage and be legitimized more publicly.…But when Trump is no longer around, what is the basis of this relationship?”
“It was a short meeting, but it was an important meeting,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters in New York on Wednesday. In their meeting, Trump and Rodríguez discussed restructuring Venezuela’s debt, stabilizing its economy and advancing a political transition, U.S. officials said. Venezuela’s government hailed the meeting as historic and said the two leaders discussed cooperation in energy, mining and security; it did not mention any discussion of a political transition.
The contrast with Rodríguez’s earlier U.N. appearances was visible from the chamber. The last time she addressed the General Assembly, in 2019, she spoke as Maduro’s vice president and declared that Venezuela “does not kneel before any imperial power.” Seven years later, with Maduro in a Brooklyn jail, she was back in New York praising oil deals with the U.S. and smiling for photos with the American president who ordered Maduro’s arrest.
At some points during her visit, the political cost of associating with Rodríguez—who was until recently under U.S. sanctions—was clear. She created a headache for Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez when she crossed the U.N. chamber to greet him while he was on the phone, exchanging kisses and a few words. Videos of the encounter quickly spread online and on Spain’s front pages, leading the country’s foreign minister to defend the interaction as a greeting and “nothing more.” Privately, some foreign officials deliberated over whether meeting Rodríguez would let them emphasize the need for a democratic transition without seeming to snub the Trump-backed leader.
Back in Washington, some lawmakers condemned Rodríguez’s presence in New York while being careful not to criticize Trump. Privately, many acknowledge that Trump’s warm embrace of Rodríguez complicates their relationships with constituents at home, who blame her for years of corruption and repression. Before the meeting, Florida Sen. Rick Scott said a photo of Trump with Rodríguez would be a “slap in the face” for Venezuelans. Afterward, Rep. Mario Díaz-Balart, also of Florida, said the images were “like a kick in the gut.”
Hours before her Tuesday evening meeting with Trump, Rodríguez sat in the chamber at the U.N. General Assembly as Trump blasted the president she had served as an “outlaw dictator,” praised the military operation that captured him and touted oil deals with Venezuela. “To the victor belong the spoils,” he said, as the cameras panned to Rodríguez’s expressionless face.
In her speech Wednesday, which made no mention of Maduro, Rodríguez spoke of a national “rebirth” for Venezuela and said elections would be held, but offered no details on when or how a democratic transition would take place. “Ultimately, what we want to see in Venezuela is a stable democracy with a functional economy,” Rubio told reporters.
A few blocks north of the U.N., dozens of protesters gathered with Venezuelan flags, signs reading “No Vote, No Oil” and “New Face, Same Regime,” and pictures of Rodríguez in an orange prison jumpsuit.
As Rodríguez met with U.S. officials in New York, opposition leader María Corina Machado made three unsuccessful attempts to return to Venezuela by plane and sea. Machado, who fled by boat in December to accept the Nobel Peace Prize, has tried to return seven times, according to her team. Trump officials blocked her first attempts in June, and White House officials worry her return could complicate the arrangement with Rodríguez.
“They can die of envy all they want, but the real stars of this year’s U.N. General Assembly are Venezuela and Delcy Rodríguez,” Jorge Rodríguez, her brother and the president of Venezuela’s National Assembly, said during a legislative session Wednesday.
Beyond Washington, Rodríguez has spent recent months engaging with former adversaries from Israel to the U.K., as Caracas seeks a return to the global financial system. Earlier this month, the U.K. upgraded diplomatic relations with Venezuela as Rodríguez pushes to regain access to billions of dollars in gold that the country holds at the Bank of England. On Monday, Rodríguez met with Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund, in New York. The multilateral lender has said it is ready to help Venezuela with economic reconstruction and relief for the earthquake that ravaged coastal Venezuela in June, and next year plans to open an office in the country.
At home, her standing remains contested. An AtlasIntel/Bloomberg poll shows that more than 60% of Venezuelans disapprove of her leadership. Recent polls show widespread opposition to Trump’s alliance with Rodríguez, and that Machado remains the country’s most popular politician. Critics say restoring Rodríguez’s access to foreign financing risks legitimizing a former Maduro ally and delaying democratic elections.