The president Donald Trump downplayed the threats made by Venezuela's interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, who over the weekend called to “put an end to Washington's orders” regarding her country’s internal politics.
When approached by correspondent David Alandete at the White House regarding Rodríguez's statements, Trump responded indifferently: "I don't know exactly what happened there, but we have a good relationship".
The president has stated that the dialogue with Nicolás Maduro's successor is "magnificent" and has avoided any direct confrontation with the Chavista leader, who is trying to consolidate her power amidst the political transition process.
Trump's words -when he was about to board the presidential plane this Monday- stand in stark contrast to Rodríguez's speech, who during an event with oil workers in Puerto La Cruz called for “opening spaces for democratic divergence” and demanded “respect for Venezuelan sovereignty.”
"Enough of Washington's orders regarding politicians in Venezuela," he said in a message disseminated by the EFE agency.
The speech by the interim president comes at a time when her government is promoting a dialogue process with political and economic sectors of the country, while The United States plays a decisive role in the transition following Maduro's capture, which occurred on January 3 during a military operation ordered by Trump.
Although Rodríguez attempts to portray herself as a sovereign figure, analysts agree that her real power remains dependent on the decisions of Washington and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who oversee the institutional and economic restructuring of Venezuela.
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