The United State government has pressed Venezuelan officials to adhere to a structured, multi-phase roadmap focused on economic recovery and political reconciliation prior to holding national elections.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio outlined this gradual strategy during talks in Washington, D.C., with Venezuelan Minister of Foreign Affairs Oliver Blanco. The high-level diplomatic engagement follows the U.S. removal of former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from Caracas nearly a year prior to face federal drug trafficking and related charges in the United States.
While neither Rubio nor Blanco addressed reporters following their discussions at the State Department, an official departmental readout detailed Washington’s official position. The statement reiterated President Donald Trump’s stated three-phase framework for Venezuela, which prioritizes national stabilization, subsequent economic recovery alongside political reconciliation, and an ultimate democratic transition.
Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado recently returned to Venezuela after expressing gratitude toward President Trump and Rubio for their backing. Machado, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate who presented her medal to Trump in 2025, stated that her return was intended to organize a domestic movement in anticipation of future electoral contests. She noted that Rubio had established a sequential timeline designed to guide the nation toward a democratic transition, establishing a clear path for presidential elections in 2027.
Machado’s political campaign navigates a complex dynamic with the U.S. administration, which has actively pursued Venezuelan oil agreements through negotiations with interim President Delcy Rodriguez. Rodriguez, who previously served as Maduro’s vice president, assumed executive leadership following his departure.
In September, Washington announced an energy agreement granting the U.S. a stake in approximately one-fifth of Venezuela’s petroleum resources. The arrangement established a joint venture involving North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP), a firm owned by Venezuelan businessman Alejandro Betancourt that ranks as the country’s second-largest private oil operator behind Chevron.
Under the terms of the accord, Caracas granted the company 100-year rights spanning 17 oilfields containing proven reserves estimated at 65 billion barrels. The framework allocates a 35 percent stake in NABEP to the Pentagon and secures guaranteed U.S. rights to purchase 20 percent of the venture’s petroleum output at cost.
Shortly before Machado’s public statements on Thursday, Rodriguez publicly affirmed that national elections would take place in Venezuela with international observation, though she did not provide a specific date. Addressing reporters about potential communications with the interim government, Machado stated she had received no direct messages from either Rodriguez or Washington.
Machado also expressed reservations regarding the bilateral energy agreement. She remarked that the pact falls short of the transparency standards demanded by Venezuelan society.
