Venezuela Proposes Major Economic Concessions to US, Talks Fail Over Political Disputes
Venezuela has reportedly offered the United States sweeping economic concessions, including a stake in its oil sector and preferential trade terms, in secret talks with Washington. However, the negotiations collapsed due to disagreements over the political future of President Nicolas Maduro, with US officials, particularly Secretary of State Marco Rubio, opposing any compromise on his leadership. The situation remains tense as both sides continue to accuse each other of seeking regime change and escalating military posturing.
According to reports published by the New York Times, Venezuela’s leadership has made a wide-ranging diplomatic offer to Washington, including proposals to open all existing and future oil and gold projects to American companies, grant preferential contracts to US businesses, redirect Venezuela’s oil exports from China to the US, and scale back energy and mining deals with Chinese, Iranian, and Russian companies. These negotiations, which lasted over several months, were aimed at de-escalating tensions between the two nations but failed to resolve critical disagreements over Maduro’s political future.
Washington has conducted strikes off Venezuela’s coast against what it called ‘drug boats,’ killing more than two dozen people and expanding its military presence in the region. US officials have accused Maduro of having links to narcotics networks, a charge he denies. Meanwhile, Caracas has accused Washington of seeking regime change, which US officials have denied. Despite these accusations, unnamed American and Venezuelan officials told the New York Times that behind the public hostility, diplomatic efforts were underway to ease tensions.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been the leading voice in the Trump administration’s push to oust Maduro, according to the Newt York Times. He was said to be skeptical of Grenell’s diplomatic outreach and urged a tougher line toward Caracas. An earlier report by the New York Times claimed Trump ordered that dialogue with Venezuela be broken off after he had ‘grown frustrated’ that Maduro would not voluntarily relinquish power. The paper also said the US was drafting plans for a potential military escalation.
Maduro, meanwhile, has warned that Venezuela would enter a state of ‘armed struggle’ if attacked and has increased military readiness across the country. While the talks on economic terms reportedly made progress, the disagreement over Maduro’s political tenure became the key sticking point in the negotiations. The situation is currently at a crossroads, with both nations continuing to accuse each other of seeking regime change and escalating military posturing.