The United States Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, met on Monday with Venezuelan Foreign Minister Oliver Blanco at the State Department in Washington, during the first bilateral meeting between the heads of diplomacy of both countries since Washington and Caracas restored diplomatic relations following the capture of Nicolás Maduro.
Both officials briefly appeared before the media between the flags of the two countries, but did not make any statements or answer journalists' questions before the meeting, scheduled for 10:00 local time.
Blanco took office just four days before this meeting, when the acting Venezuelan president, Delcy Rodríguez, appointed him as chancellor on October 29, replacing Félix Plasencia, who was sent to London to manage the recovery of approximately 31 tons of Venezuelan gold —valued at around 2 billion dollars— which has been blocked at the Bank of England for over six years.
Blanco's profile is unusual for Chavista diplomacy: he was a member of Acción Democrática, served as campaign manager for the diplomat Diego Arria in the opposition primaries of 2012, and worked in communications for the National Assembly during Henry Ramos Allup's parliamentary presidency in 2016.
Rodríguez appointed him to the government in February 2026 as Deputy Minister for Europe and North America, promoted him to First Deputy Minister in July, and named him Chancellor at the end of October, making him the youngest head of Venezuelan diplomacy in the country's history.
The Friday before the meeting in Washington, Blanco had already held a meeting with John Barrett, the chargé d'affaires of the U.S. embassy in Caracas, where he reaffirmed Venezuela's willingness to engage.
"We reaffirm our commitment to continue strengthening, under the leadership of the acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, the dialogue and bilateral cooperation for the benefit of our countries," declared Blanco after that meeting.
The meeting this Monday is part of an accelerated normalization process throughout 2026, which included a face-to-face meeting between Trump and Rodríguez in New York on September 23 — the first meeting between the leaders of both countries in over eleven years — and a petroleum agreement through which Venezuela granted North American Blue Energy Partners access to 65 billion barrels of proven reserves in 17 strategic fields.
The most recent immediate precedent was the return to Venezuela of María Corina Machado on October 25, facilitated according to Rubio by direct efforts from Washington with Venezuelan authorities.
This diplomatic shift has had direct consequences for Cuba: Venezuela halted oil shipments to the island following Maduro's capture, worsening an already severe energy crisis.
The Trump administration supports a roadmap that includes renewing the Supreme Court of Justice and the National Electoral Council between November and December 2026, so that Rodríguez declares the Presidency vacant in 2027 and calls for elections within six months.
Filed under: