CIA director Ratcliffe meets with Venezuela's Rodriguez in Caracas, NYT reports
- - CIA director Ratcliffe meets with Venezuela's Rodriguez in Caracas, NYT reports
ReutersJanuary 16, 2026 at 7:42 PM
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CIA Director John Ratcliffe arrives to brief senators on the situation in Venezuela, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., January 7, 2026. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
Jan 16 (Reuters) - CIA Director John Ratcliffe met with Venezuela's interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, in Caracas, the New York Times reported on Friday, citing a U.S. official.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report of the meeting, which the Times said took place on Thursday. The White House did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Ratcliffe met with Rodriguez at U.S. President Donald Trump's direction "to deliver the message that the United States looks forward to an improved working relationship," the report said.
They discussed intelligence cooperation, economic stability and the need to ensure that Venezuela was no longer a "safe haven for America's adversaries, especially narco-traffickers," the report added.
During her tenure as vice president of Venezuela, Rodriguez was involved in negotiations with a U.S. special envoy, Richard Grenell, along with other officials, on a deal to get the now-deposed former president Maduro to voluntarily give up power, the newspaper said.
Rodriguez has previously criticized the Trump administration for "kidnapping" Maduro and called for his return. However, she is Washington has said she is favorable as an interim leader to preserve stability.
(Reporting by Ananya Palyekar in BengaluruEditing by Alison Williams and Peter Graff)
Source: “AOL Breaking”
