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Trump Held Secret Talks With Venezuela's Cabello Before Maduro Capture

Trump officials engaged Diosdado Cabello to prevent unrest and manage sanctions amid efforts to stabilize Venezuela’s interim government, with communications spanning months before Maduro's capture.

  • U.S. officials held months-long talks with Diosdado Cabello, Venezuelan interior minister, warning him against targeting the opposition before and after the January 3 raid.
  • With Washington seeking oil access, Cabello and other Maduro loyalists are relied on as temporary rulers, amid a $10 million bounty raised to $25 million for him.
  • That security apparatus, which includes intelligence services, police and armed forces, remains largely intact after the January 3 raid, while Cabello was named in the indictment but not taken.
  • U.S. officials warned of a risk that if Cabello unleashes forces, it could foment chaos and threaten Delcy Rodriguez, interim President's grip on power.
  • U.S. officials contacted Cabello directly and via intermediaries, anonymous sources said, and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment; it is unclear if talks covered future governance.
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+19 Reposted by 19 other sources
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Exclusive: US talks with hardline Venezuelan minister Cabello began months before raid

While Delcy Rodríguez has been seen by the U.S. as the linchpin for Trump's strategy for post-Maduro Venezuela, Diosdado Cabello is widely believed to have the power to keep those plans on track or upend them.

·United Kingdom
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Lean Right

The also architect of Venezuelan repression has been in contact with the Trump administration both directly and through intermediaries

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Radio Infinita broke the news in on Friday, January 16, 2026.
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