Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has given her first formal news conference since fleeing her home country in December, and she used the occasion to reassure the United States of her unwavering support.
She also outlined a vision of Venezuela’s future where the South American country was closely aligned with US interests, following the abduction of former President Nicolas Maduro.
“The result of a stable transition will be a proud Venezuela who is going to be the best ally the United States has ever had in the Americas,” Machado said at Friday’s event.
The news conference came one day after Machado travelled to the White House for a brief, closed-door lunch with US President Donald Trump. It took place on stage at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank known for publishing a policy blueprint for Trump’s second term, known as Project 2025.
Trump, like Machado, has long had a tense relationship with Maduro, the former bus driver who assumed Venezuela’s presidency in 2013 as the late Hugo Chavez’s hand-picked successor.
Maduro was a champion of Chavez’s socialist political movement, chavismo, and he also faced widespread criticism for carrying out a campaign of human rights abuses, including the torture and imprisonment of political dissidents.
Since returning to office, Trump ratcheted up US pressure against Maduro’s government, including through a large-scale military buildup in the Caribbean Sea and the bombing of alleged drug-trafficking boats leaving Venezuela.
United Arab Emirates Dirham Exchange Rate
