Washington, Jan 31 (EFE).- Richard Grenell, United States special envoy to Venezuela, will meet on Friday Nicolás Maduro, who recently took office for a third term after a controversial re-election, US Special Envoy for Latin America Mauricio Claver-Carone confirmed.
Venezuela has no diplomatic relations with the US, and Grenell’s visit is aimed at getting the Caribbean country to accept deportation flights for undocumented migrants and to secure the release of US citizens held in Venezuelan prisons, Claver-Carone said in a press briefing.
«This particular mission is pretty specific. The US and President Trump expect Nicolás Maduro to take in all Venezuelan criminals and gang members sent to the US and to do so without requirements. This is a non-negotiable matter,» said Claver-Carone.
«The second point is that the US hostages held in Venezuela must be released immediately,» he added.
Washington has faced difficulties deporting Venezuelans for years due to deteriorating bilateral relations, especially after the diplomatic breakdown in 2019 during President DonaldTrump’s first term (2017-2021), when the US recognized opposition figure Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s legitimate president.
Since then, deportation flights have become rare. They briefly resumed under the Joe Biden administration (2021-2025) in October 2022 but were suspended again four months later.
Grenell and Maduro will meet on Friday afternoon, according to CNN.
As for the detained Americans, the Trump administration has not given any details of their identities; however, the Miami-based Independent Venezuelan-American Citizens NGO identified eight US citizens imprisoned in Venezuela.
They are Gregory David Werber, David Guttenberg Guillarme, Aaron Barrett Logan, Jonathan Pagán González, Wilbert Joseph Castaño, David Estrella, José Marcelo Vargas, and Lucas Hunter, the latter of French-American nationality.
Maduro’s opponents, some of whom are particularly strong in Florida, expressed concern about Trump making concessions to Maduro, which they say would allow the Venezuelan leader to consolidate power.
Republican Senator Rick Scott of Florida, who in the past has been critical of policies that could benefit Maduro, said on X that he hopes «today’s visit, the only thing Richard Grenell focuses on is demanding the return of the kidnapped Americans, ensuring that Maduro takes back the thugs and gang members in our country, and finding a new country for Maduro, Diosdado, and anyone else involved in this thuggish regime to relocate to ASAP.»
Claver-Carone tried to alleviate these concerns during his call with the press, enssuring that the meeting with Maduro did not change Trump’s priorities regarding Venezuela or Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s commitment to democracy in the South American country.
On Thursday, Grenell posted a photo from the Oval Office with Trump on his X account. The message accompanying the picture read: «Just left an Oval meeting with Trump. He’s focused on what’s best for America and the American people.»
Grenell holds the position of special envoy for «special missions,» to help the Trump administration deal with some of its most complex foreign policy challenges.
During Trump’s first term, he served as ambassador to Germany, special presidential envoy to Serbia and Kosovo, and briefly as acting director of national intelligence. EFE
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