Double play in Caracas: Delcy Rodriguez's regime signals alignment with the US while paying tribute to Russia and China

Since the capture of Nicolas Maduro, the interim regime of Delcy Rodriguez has played ambiguously and boldly on the international geopolitical chessboard, seeking to project a strategic alignment with the United States while appearing to marginalize Russia and China's more than two decades of influence on Venezuelan territory.

This maneuver is intended to present Caracas as a reliable partner for U.S. interests in the region, distancing itself from the Eastern power axes that sustained Chavismo for decades.

However, this supposed "rupture" with the revolution's traditional allies appears to clash with the reality of official gestures in the Venezuelan capital. While Rodriguez's emissaries negotiate on U.S. soil, the Chavista Foreign Ministry maintains a rhetoric of absolute loyalty to Moscow and Beijing.

On April 28, Foreign Minister Yván Gil organized a solemn ceremony at the National Pantheon, where the ambassadors of Russia and China laid floral wreaths before the sarcophagus of the Liberator, Simón Bolívar. The event commemorated the 30th anniversary of the Strategic Partnership between the two nations, an occasion that Gil characterized as an endorsement of multipolar diplomacy.

"Venezuela joins this commemoration fulfilling our unwavering commitment to the advancement of the new multipolar world and the Bolivarian Diplomacy of Peace," Gil stated through his social media.

Air standardization and the economic factor

Amid these contradictory signals, the bilateral relationship with the United States has taken a concrete step. This Thursday, the first direct commercial flight between the two countries after seven years of suspension landed at Maiquetia International Airport, which serves the city of Caracas.

Flight AA3599, operated by Envoy Air (a subsidiary of American Airlines), departed from Miami as a symbol of the restoration of economic ties. This follows Maduro's capture in January and the reopening of the U.S. embassy in Caracas just a month ago.

Arriving on the aircraft were National Energy Board executive director and adviser to President Donald Trump, Jarrod Agen, and Department of State Undersecretary Ryan McCormack, with the intention of advancing "agreements for mutual benefit," according to the interim regime.

The Trump administration has greeted these commercial advances with optimism. The president has highlighted the current profitability of the relationship, noting that Venezuela's wealth production has reached levels not seen in a long time.

The Trump administration has welcomed these trade developments with optimism. The president has highlighted the current profitability of the relationship, noting that wealth creation in Venezuela has reached levels not seen in a long time.

"We get along fantastic with Venezuela. We work very closely with them. They're producing more money today than they've put out in decades. They're making a lot of money and so are we," President Donald Trump declared today.

Stability as a bridge to transition

For Washington’s representatives on the ground, economic reopening and energy agreements are not ends in themselves but rather tools for a broader political objective. The U.S. chargé d’affaires in Venezuela, John Barrett, has been clear on this matter.

Barrett argues that the insistence on financial stability and normalization of relations is primarily intended to prepare the ground for the ultimate change of command.

Chargé d'Affaires John Barrett stated today from the Maiquetia airport that the purpose is to create conditions to bring Venezuela closer to the last phase of the plan: transition,t hus advancing Washington on a road map where economic stability is only the prelude to a total political exit for the structure of chavismo.