Venezuela: Department of State acknowledges Delcy Rodríguez is stalling and demands free elections with Machado's return and participation

The head of the Department of State's Western Hemisphere Bureau, Michael Kozak, acknowledged before Congress that the Chavista regime, led by Delcy Rodriguez in the interim, seeks to buy time during the transition under the White House's tutelage, avoiding rapid progress towards the democratization of the country. However, Kozak also made clear that Washington has its ace up its sleeve: control of Venezuela's oil.

The senior official appeared before the House Western Hemisphere subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere as part of the hearing "Latin America after the Fall of Maduro," where he was questioned by Rep. María Elvira Salazar (R-FL), chairwoman of the subcommittee, who pressed hard on the Department of State's strategy vis-à-vis Caracas.

Delcy procrastinates, Washington presses on oil

Rep. Salazar recalled what many regime critics have been warning for weeks: Delcy Rodriguez has no intention of opening the democratic game.

"You understand that Delcy is not going to take any initiatives when it comes to opening up the democratic game, right?" he said to Kozak, who did not contradict him and, in fact, nodded to the question.

The official admitted that Washington does not trust the Rodriguez-led interim regime's good faith, but rather its capacity for pressure. "We're not trusting them, but we're trusting in our leverage to be able to do it," he said, noting that the United States has significant control over Venezuelan oil revenues, which constitute the main instrument of pressure on Caracas.

However, Salazar insisted that it is up to the Department of State and the White House to achieve a legitimate transition in Venezuela, calling for faster and more precise actions from the top officials. "They're just trying to buy time. They don't want to reconcile. They're Maduro. So it's up to us."

No election date for now

One of the key points of the hearing was the timetable for holding elections in Venezuela. When asked by Salazar if Washington has a date for free and fair elections with international observers, Kozak clarified: "We don't have a date. We have conditions."

"We want election observers (...) the registry of voters in Venezuela is way out of date, if not completely skewed. That needs to be cleaned up and modernized. The machinery, the election machinery, election commission and the Supreme Judicial Council that supervises it are Maduro appointees that nobody has confidence in. So what we want to see is the opposition and the interim authorities agreeing on a restructuring of those so that that's in place," the official said. 

Kozak also said that, before coming to an election, Venezuela needs a real amnesty law that allows all opposition leaders to participate: "Amnesty law — the Venezuelan interim authorities claim that over 8,000 people have benefited from that. That's not enough."

Salazar insisted that these objectives must move forward in parallel to the economic recovery and reactivation of PDVSA, and not after. "We need a date so then we can start working towards that goal", said the legislator.

The return of María Corina Machado

The other central axis of the exchange was the situation of María Corina Machado, the opposition leader who spent 16 months in hiding before escaping Venezuela to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in Norway. Salazar asked if the Department of State had demanded guarantees from the regime for her return and political participation.

Kozak responded firmly: "Yes, ma'am, and I think that that's been made very clear to them. We expect all the people, including Maria Corina Machado, who I also respect very much, to be able to go back and participate freely in an election."