officials have said publicly they want the interim president to sever relations with close international allies like Iran, China and Russia, including expelling their diplomats and advisers from Venezuela. But Rodriguez, whose swearing-in ceremony was attended by representatives of those countries early this month, has yet to publicly announce such a move. She became president after the U.S.
captured former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3. intelligence reports said it was not clear if she is fully on board with the U.S. strategy in her country, according to the sources, who declined to be identified by name.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe travelled on January 15 to Caracas, where he discussed the country’s political future with Rodriguez. Reuters could not determine if those conversations changed the intelligence agencies’ opinion. Washington wants to rein in its foes’ influence in the Western hemisphere, including in Venezuela, where Trump seeks to exploit the OPEC nation’s vast oil reserves.
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If Rodriguez were to break ties with the U.S. rivals, it would open more opportunity for U.S. investment in Venezuela’s energy sector.
But failure to control Rodriguez could undercut Washington’s efforts to direct the country’s interim rulers from afar and avoid a deeper U.S. military role. The Central Intelligence Agency and the Venezuela government did not respond to requests for comment.
The CIA has previously assessed that officials loyal to Maduro, including Rodriguez, were best positioned to govern the country following his ouster. But critics of Trump’s Venezuela strategy have expressed doubts about the wisdom of keeping Maduro’s loyalists in place as the country’s interim leaders. The concerns about Rodriguez’ reliability were present prior to the U.S.
military operation, said two sources. For Venezuela, the U.S. directive means abandoning its closest allies outside the region.
Iran has helped Venezuela repair oil refineries while China has taken oil as repayment for debt. Russia has supplied weaponry, including missiles, to Venezuela’s military.
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