The administration of US President Donald Trump held talks with Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello months before the operation to detain President Nicolas Maduro on January 3, and the contacts continued afterwards. This is according to several sources familiar with the matter, News.bg reports.
According to information from four sources, US officials have warned the 62-year-old Cabello not to use the security services and pro-government structures he controls to attack the opposition. The security apparatus - including the intelligence services, police and armed forces - has remained largely intact since the US crackdown.
Cabello is a defendant in the same US drug trafficking case that was used by the Trump administration as a pretext for Maduro's arrest, but he himself was not involved in the operation. The talks began early in the current presidential term and covered topics such as sanctions against Cabello and the charges brought against him, and continued both before and after Maduro's removal, the sources said.
Communication with Cabello is seen as a key element of Washington's efforts to avoid chaos in Venezuela. A source familiar with the U.S. concerns said a possible deployment of forces under Cabello's control could threaten the hold on power of interim President Delcy Rodriguez, whom Trump has publicly supported.
It is unclear whether the talks included topics related to the country's future governance, or whether Cabello heeded the warnings. He has publicly declared his loyalty to Rodriguez, but remains seen as a figure capable of both aiding and sabotaging the U.S. strategy for Venezuela after Maduro.
A longtime ally of the late Hugo Chavez and a political mentor to Maduro, Cabello is considered the second most powerful man in the country and a key figure in the repressive apparatus. A former soldier, he has influence over counterintelligence and has been linked to pro-government militias, including groups known as “colectivos“.
The United States has imposed sanctions on Cabello for years for alleged drug trafficking. In 2020, Washington announced a $10 million reward for information leading to his arrest, which was later increased to $25 million. He has been cited as a key figure in the so-called “Cartel de los Soles“, charges that Cabello denies.
After Maduro's overthrow, some American politicians have questioned why Cabello has not been arrested. At the same time, there have been reports in recent days of a reduction in checks and detentions. The US and Venezuelan authorities have announced the imminent release of a large number of detainees, identified by the opposition as political prisoners, although human rights groups note that the process is progressing slowly.