Venezuelan Interim President Delcy Rodríguez Discusses Meeting with President Trump

Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodríguez provided details on September 23, 2026, about her meeting with President Trump during the United Nations General Assembly. The meeting occurred at a reception hosted by Trump at the Lotte Palace Hotel in New York and was the first encounter between the two leaders since US forces captured former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in January. Rodríguez stated, "We held a historic meeting with the President of the United States, Donald Trump, with whom we discussed strengthening the bilateral relationship between our countries and advancing a cooperation agenda in strategic areas such as energy, mining, and security and other matters of common interest." She expressed gratitude for the Trump administration's support following a significant earthquake in Venezuela and for backing the country's reintegration into multilateral spaces. Rodríguez emphasized the importance of dialogue in the historical relationship between Venezuela and the United States. Trump was accompanied by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, chief of staff Susie Wiles, and deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller during the meeting. Rodríguez brought her vice president of economy, oil minister, and officials from the state oil company PDVSA. In his speech at the UN, Trump highlighted the release of Venezuelan political prisoners and a major oil deal with Venezuela, aiming for $100 billion in investment in the oil industry, which includes US control over more than 65 billion barrels of proven oil reserves.