Six US nationals detained in Venezuela head home to the US with Donald Trump's envoy for special missions, Richard Grenell (third from right). The names of those released have been kept in reserve. Photo: X/@RichardGrenell.
“We are very clear about the Venezuelan government and Maduro, but Donald Trump is someone who does not want to make regime changes,” said Washington’s special envoy to Venezuela, Richard Grenell.
Grenell, the Trump Administration’s envoy for special missions, said this Saturday, February 22, during a speech, that the US president has no interest in promoting regime change in the world and that his main focus is the well-being of US citizens.
Grenell’s statements follow his visit to Caracas on January 31 and the subsequent release of six US citizens detained in the South American country, along with the resumption of repatriation flights of Venezuelan migrants stranded in the US.
During a speech at an event hosted by The Epoch Times, Grenell recalled his meeting with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas. “I spent the day in Caracas, I met with Maduro, I saw him face to face. I tried to have a conversation where we had a different relationship with him,” the official said.
Despite the history of tensions between Washington and Caracas, Grenell made it clear that the Trump administration’s policy is not geared toward intervention in foreign governments. “We are very clear about the Venezuelan government and Maduro, but Donald Trump is someone who does not want to make regime changes,” he said.
The diplomat added that Trump’s interests are focused on his own country and on improving the quality of life of US nationals. “He is someone who wants to do everything he can to make the US stronger, more prosperous. That is what we are focused on right now,” he added, contradicting the general perception among many in the US, who are worried about the direction that US foreign policy and the US economy are heading.
Negotiation with Maduro and the pragmatic approach
Grenell also revealed that during his visit to Venezuela, Maduro presented a series of requests in exchange for the release of the detained US citizens. However, he said that the offer on his part was only that of his presence, as a US envoy, in Miraflores Palace.
“As a diplomat, I have to say that when you’re at the negotiating table, the reason we’re successful is not because we can talk better than other people, it’s not because we’re convinced either way. There’s a reason Donald Trump’s ambassadors are able to do these things. And it’s because of Donald Trump, it’s because he represents a credible threat,” he said in a contradictory way.
Meanwhile, after the aforementioned meeting, President Nicolás Maduro described the meeting positively and expressed the need to establish an “Agenda Zero” between both nations: “Our message has been one: We only want to build relations of respect for the sovereignty of Venezuela, for the democratic life of Venezuela, for international law and for our Latin American and Caribbean region,” he said.
Grenell, meanwhile, said that Caracas’s concession was due to pressure exerted by the Trump administration based on various strategies, not just on the possibility of military intervention. “It’s not just a threat of war, it’s a threat of tariffs, it’s a threat of economic sanctions, it’s a credible threat,” the US diplomat said.
A relationship under construction
Grenell’s visit to Caracas marked a significant moment in US-Venezuela relations. Although no official change in Washington’s stance toward the Maduro government was made, the meeting did show an openness to dialogue, on pragmatic terms.
In a symbolic gesture, Grenell was received at the Miraflores Palace and toured, with Maduro, an exhibition on Venezuelan independence relics, reflecting Caracas’ intention to place the conversation within a historical framework of the rebellious and unyielding nature of Venezuela’s heritage.
Trump’s Special Envoy Meets President Maduro in Caracas (+US Prisoners Released)
The release of the six US citizens was also hailed by both sides as an achievement, although details about those freed have been kept confidential. According to Grenell, “some [of the released prisoners] have complicated issues and their names will not be revealed.”
Despite the fact that political differences between the two countries persist, the meeting on January 31 made it clear that, at least on certain issues, there is room for negotiation. “We want a different relationship,” Grenell concluded, reinforcing the idea that, under the Trump administration, any dialogue with Venezuela will respond to strategic interests and not to a policy of intervention or regime change, something that rests in the wild dreams of far-right politicians, both in Venezuela and in the US.
(Telesur) with Orinoco Tribune content
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SA
