Venezuela would not know how to hold elections at this time, says Trump

US plan for Venezuela will have three phases and includes transition of power, says Rubio United States President Donald Trump said that Venezuela “wouldn’t know how to hold elections at this time.” The statement was made in an interview with the Fox News channel this Thursday (8). This Wednesday (7), the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, released the American plan for Venezuela, which consists of three phases — the last of which is the transition of power from the hands of Chavismo — but which does not include an electoral process. According to Rubio, the US plans to stabilize the country, followed by economic recovery and then a transition of power. Since the capture of Nicolás Maduro by the USA, on Saturday (3), power has been exercised by his deputy, Delcy Rodríguez, one of the main names in Chavismo. Rubio did not speak about holding elections, nor in details about how Washington intends to execute the plan. On Tuesday (6), Rodríguez stated that there was no “external agent” governing Venezuela. “The first step is to stabilize the country. We don’t want it to descend into chaos,” said Trump’s secretary. Shortly after the secretary’s statements, however, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt stated that thinking about an electoral calendar for Venezuela is still “very premature” when asked about the matter by journalists at her press conference. According to Rubio, part of the stabilization includes a “quarantine” of Venezuela on the international market, and the seizure of oil tankers is part of that plan. “They have oil that’s stuck in Venezuela. They can’t move it because of our quarantine and because it’s sanctioned. We’re going to take between 30 and 50 million bars of oil. We’re going to sell it on the market, at market rates, not at the discounts that Venezuela was getting,” Rubio said. “This money will then be handled in a way that we will control how it is distributed, in a way that benefits the Venezuelan people, not corruption, not the regime.” “The second step will be a step we call recovery, and that is to ensure that Americans, East Asians and other companies have access to the Venezuelan market in a fair way.” “Also, at the same time, begin to create the process of national reconciliation, within Venezuela, so that the opposition forces are amnestied and released from prisons or brought into the country and begin to rebuild civil society. And then, the third phase, of course, will be the transition,” said the Secretary of State. Rubio said he would not reveal details of the plan that are sensitive or still being discussed. He did not mention the possibility of a new American operation in Venezuelan territory or the appointment of an intervener. Oil tankers approached The United States announced on Wednesday the seizure of the oil tanker Marinera (formerly Bella 1), linked to Venezuela and sailing under the Russian flag, and the Sophia, which also operates with oil from Caracas. The seizure of the oil tanker has the potential to escalate tensions between Washington and Moscow. The Russian government repudiated the seizure of the tanker and stated that the US action violated maritime law and that there was “no jurisdiction for the use of force”. The White House previously stated that the seizure would respect international law by accusing the ship of sailing under a false flag. Post-Maduro Venezuela After the capture of Nicolás Maduro by US military forces, in an operation in Caracas, the Presidency has been held by his vice-president, Delcy Rodríguez. Rodríguez was Maduro’s vice president and first in the line of succession. The Supreme Court, controlled by the Chavistas, ordered her to take office for 90 days — a period that could be extended. Rodríguez, a 56-year-old labor lawyer known for her strong ties to the private sector and her devotion to Chavismo, was sworn in before her brother Jorge, president of the National Assembly. Their father was a revolutionary leader tortured and killed by the Venezuelan government in the 1970s, supported by the US at the time. The President of the United States, Donald Trump, on December 29, 2025 REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

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