U.S. dismisses Maria Corina Machado to stabilize Venezuela

Washington.- The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump ruled out opposition leader María Corina Machado on Sunday to solve Venezuela's immediate problems after the capture of ruler Nicolás Maduro, and instead offered an opportunity to the Executive led now by Vice President Delcy Rodríguez.

"María Corina Machado is fantastic (…), but here is the reality we face, the immediate reality is that, unfortunately, the vast majority of the opposition is no longer present in Venezuela. We have short-term issues that must be addressed immediately," said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Focus on the Near Future

Rubio told NBC News that they are focusing on "what will happen in the next two or three weeks, two or three months" in Venezuela, one day after US forces captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in Caracas, who now face charges of narcoterrorism and corruption in New York.

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The statements of the head of US diplomacy, reported by several local television networks, take place one day after Trump stated that it "would be very difficult" for Machado to preside over the South American nation after Maduro's departure, considering that the Nobel Peace Prize winner "does not have support or respect within the country." Regarding the current negotiations with the Venezuelan government, Rubio warned CBS News that Delcy Rodríguez "is someone you can work with", unlike the deposed Venezuelan president, who, according to him, broke all the agreements made with Washington. The veteran politician, considered key in the efforts to depose Maduro, questioned the legitimacy of a government elected in the disputed 2024 elections, in which the opposition claims victory, but did not give clear signals that there is still a schedule to call future elections in that country.

Warnings to Caracas

"Now there are other people in charge of the military and police apparatus there (in Venezuela). They will have to decide now which direction they want to take, and we hope they choose a different direction than the one Nicolás Maduro chose. Ultimately, we hope this will lead to a comprehensive transition in Venezuela," Rubio said, this time to NBC News. The Secretary of State clarified that his country will manage the "direction" towards which Venezuela will move from now on, after Trump said that Washington would govern the South American nation until there is a transition, although he insisted that the U.S. does not maintain troops in Venezuelan territory. He also warned on ABC News that they still have the pressure margin given to them by the blockade of crude oil from the South American nation ordered by Trump and added that they will continue to seize sanctioned tankers transporting Venezuelan oil, one of the pressure strategies that Washington imposed in recent weeks against Caracas. "Until Venezuela addresses the problems it had under the Maduro government, which still persist, it will continue to face pressure from the US," said Rubio, who confirmed that they will continue attacking vessels in the Caribbean associated with the alleged drug trafficking network led, according to Trump, by the detained Venezuelan president.

Future Investments in Venezuelan Oil

After Maduro's capture, Trump stated that American oil companies will invest "billions of dollars" to repair the infrastructure of that sector in Venezuela, currently "in very bad condition." Rubio specified this Sunday that although he has not spoken directly with the directors of the oil companies in his country, he has already contacted the Secretaries of the Interior and Energy to establish contacts. Rubio predicted that there will be demand from "Western companies" that do not belong "neither to Russia nor China".