Donald Trump and Delcy Rodríguez meet behind closed doors at a New York hotel for the first time

Donald Trump met with Delcy Rodríguez, interim leader of the regime in Venezuela, in New York.  The first face-to-face meeting between the two took place at the Lotte Palace Hotel in Midtown.

According to journalist Eric Martin of Bloomberg, Secretary of State Marco Rubio also participated in the meeting, as well as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles and Stephen Miller, deputy chief of staff for policy.

The face-to-face meeting took place just hours after Trump's speech at the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UN), where he celebrated the capture of the "dictator" and "criminal" Maduro.

"In January, my direction, the United States military conducted a massive military operation penetrating deep into the Venezuelan capital, Caracas. Descended on a heavily defended and fortified military base, one that was supposed to be flawless against attack, and arrested the out law dictator, real criminal, Nicolas Maduro," Trump said, with Rodríguez staring intently at him from the audience.

"Since that day, hundreds of Venezuelan political prisoners have been freed. They've let them out of jails, and we're working closely with the leaders of Venezuela to forge a much better future for the Venezuelan people," he added.

For years, Rodríguez was a leading figure in Chavismo and served as Maduro's vice president before assuming interim power. However, since Maduro's capture on January 3, she has been working with the White House to advance the political and economic reconstruction of Venezuela.

One of the main pillars of that cooperation is oil. In August, the Trump administration announced an agreement that grants the United States majority control over more than 65 billion barrels of Venezuela's proven reserves. The agreement provides for $100 billion in investment to rebuild Venezuela's oil industry and $200 billion in royalty and tax payments over the next 25 years.

Rodríguez's arrival in the United States coincides with growing pressure from some Republican figures to announce an election date in Venezuela. Among them are Senator Bernie Moreno of Ohio (who even proposed July 24, 2027), Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and Congressman Mario Díaz-Balart.