Delcy Rodriguez, Venezuela interim president. Reuters/Yonhap News

Interim President Delcy Rodriguez said via social media that on the 14th (local time) she had a phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump.

In a post on X the same day, Interim President Rodriguez wrote, “I had a long and courteous phone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump in an atmosphere of mutual respect,” and “We discussed a bilateral cooperation agenda for the peoples of both countries and outstanding issues between the two governments.”

Interim President Rodriguez took charge of state affairs on the 5th, two days after the 3rd, when U.S. authorities, through military action, forcibly detained Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, under the ‘absence of the president’. At the time, she was serving as vice president and minister of petroleum.

Reuters reported that President Trump also confirmed the call that day and, regarding Interim President Rodriguez, said she was “someone we have worked very well with“ and ”excellent“.

Keeping the possibility of dialogue open with the United States and the international community, Interim President Rodriguez has continued conciliatory remarks suggesting an easing of economic sanctions and political compromise. At a local press conference that day, she emphasized the large-scale release of anti-government activists and said, “A new political moment is unfolding.” On the 7th, through a presidential office press release in Venezuela, she defended negotiations on crude oil exports with the United States, expressing the view that “trade between the two countries should not be regarded as something unusual.”