U.S. President Donald Trump and Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez held their first face-to-face meeting in New York since Nicolás Maduro was captured by U.S. forces in January.
According to Infobae, the meeting took place Tuesday evening at the Lotte New York Palace hotel during a reception hosted by Trump for foreign leaders attending the United Nations General Assembly. The encounter was held behind closed doors, with no press access.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller also participated.
Rodríguez described the meeting as historic and said both sides discussed strengthening bilateral relations and cooperation in strategic areas such as energy, mining and security.
Why is this meeting significant?
It represents a direct contact between Washington and Caracas after years of diplomatic tensions and comes as the two governments discuss economic and energy issues.
The meeting also marked the first encounter between U.S. and Venezuelan leaders in more than a decade.
