Venezuela’s Rodríguez rejects US push to cut ties with China, Russia, Iran: US Intel.
US intelligence reports indicate that Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, is resisting Washington’s push to realign the country’s foreign partnerships.
The assessments have raised doubts about whether Rodríguez will fully comply with Washington’s demands to sever ties with Iran, China, and Russia.
Venezuela, home to some of the world’s largest proven oil reserves, has become central to Washington’s pressure campaign to curb the influence of rival powers in the Western Hemisphere.
Trump has repeatedly demanded that Caracas expel diplomats and advisers from allied countries.
Representatives from all the three countries attended Rodríguez’s swearing-in earlier this month, following the US raid on the country that led to the kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro on January 3.
In mid-January, the US President Donald Trump claimed he held a “long call” with Rodríguez, describing her as “a terrific person.” He later said the two discussed “many topics,” including oil, minerals, trade and national security, and claimed they had made “tremendous progress.”
Rodríguez, who has said she is working to unify the country after the US abduction of Maduro, has since signaled resistance to Washington’s pressure.
Nearly a month into her interim role, she said Venezuela has had “enough” of US interference.
“Enough already of Washington’s orders over politicians in Venezuela,” Rodríguez told oil workers in the city of Puerto La Cruz on Sunday.
"This republic has paid a very high price for confronting the consequences of fascism and extremism in our country,” she added.
US officials are now developing contacts with senior Venezuelan military and security figures in case Washington decides to change its approach, a source on Venezuela policy told Reuters.
Since the attack on the country, the US has also sought greater access to Venezuela’s energy sector. A senior Trump administration official said the president “continues to exert maximum leverage” and expects cooperation from the country’s leadership.
Washington is also moving to establish a permanent Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) presence inside Venezuela. CNN reported on Tuesday that the agency is quietly expanding its footprint, meeting local officials, monitoring political opponents, and shaping the policies of the new leadership.
The report said that the Trump administration is likely to rely heavily on the CIA to lead the initial re-entry into the country.
Trump has openly acknowledged that a central objective of the military action against Venezuela was control over its oil sector — underscoring a long US history of violence and imperial domination in Latin America.
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