By Erin Banko, Jonathan.
NEW YORK, Jan 27 (Reuters) – U.S. intelligence reports have raised doubts about whether interim Venezuelan President Delsey Rodriguez will formally cut ties with U.S. opponents and cooperate with the Trump administration, four people familiar with the reports said in recent days.
US officials have said publicly that they want the interim president to cut ties with close international allies such as Iran, China and Russia, including expelling its diplomats and advisers from Venezuela.
But Rodriguez, whose swearing-in ceremony earlier this month was attended by representatives from those countries, has yet to publicly announce such a move. She became president after the United States took control of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on January 3.
US intelligence reports said it was unclear whether she was fully on board with US strategy in her country, according to the source, who declined to be identified by name.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled to Caracas on January 15, where he discussed the country’s political future with Rodriguez. Reuters could not determine whether those conversations changed the minds of intelligence agencies.
Washington wants to curb the influence of its enemies in the Western Hemisphere, including Venezuela, where Trump seeks to exploit the OPEC nation’s vast oil reserves.
If Rodriguez were to cut ties with U.S. rivals, it would open up more opportunity for U.S. investment in Venezuela’s energy sector. But failure to rein in Rodriguez could undermine Washington’s efforts to direct the country’s interim rulers from afar and avoid a deeper role for the U.S. military.
The Central Intelligence Agency and the Venezuelan government did not respond to requests for comment.
Asked for comment, a senior Trump administration official, who declined to be identified, said US President Donald Trump “continues to maximize leverage” over Venezuelan leaders and “expects this cooperation to continue.”
Letting go of longtime allies?
The CIA has already assessed that officials loyal to Maduro, including Rodriguez, were best placed to govern the country after his ouster.
But critics of Trump’s Venezuela strategy have questioned the wisdom of keeping Maduro loyalists as the country’s interim leader. Concerns about Rodriguez’s credibility were present before the U.S. military action, the two sources said.
For Venezuela, the US directive is to abandon its closest allies outside the region. Iran has helped Venezuela repair oil refineries, while China has taken the oil as debt repayment. Russia has provided weapons including missiles to the Venezuelan army.
Trump has also cited communist-led Cuba as another U.S. adversary that wants to abandon Venezuela. Havana has provided security and intelligence support while receiving cut-rate Venezuelan oil.
Since Maduro’s ouster, Rodriguez, who has deep ties to the oil sector to stabilize the country, has taken steps to curry favor with Washington, including the release of political prisoners and the right to sell 30 million to 50 million barrels of oil to the United States.
In a speech on Sunday, Rodriguez said he had “had enough” of US interference. Still, US officials have had positive calls with him in recent days, according to two sources.
The Trump administration doesn’t see an immediate option to work with Rodriguez, since it has strongly supported him publicly, two of the sources said.
But U.S. officials are developing contacts with senior military and security officials in case they decide to change their approach, said a source briefed on Venezuelan policy.
Machado considered the option of running Venezuela longer
Recent intelligence reports have also found that opposition leader Maria Corina Machado is currently unable to successfully run the country in part because she does not have strong ties to the country’s security services or the oil sector, the sources said.
Some observers and Machado’s movement say he won the 2024 election that year by a wide margin, although the state supported Maduro’s victory. She is popular among Venezuelans.
Trump told reporters last week that he wanted Machado to be “involved” in leading the country, without providing specifics.
A person familiar with the administration’s discussions with Machado said he is well-liked by the White House and considered a long-term choice for the leadership position in Venezuela.
A separate source briefed on Venezuelan policy suggested that for now, Machado could be considered for an advisory role but no concrete decision has been made. Machado’s representatives did not respond to requests for comment.
Spetalnick;
