The commander of the United States Southern Command (Southcom), General Francis Donovan, arrived in Caracas for talks with the interim president and senior officials, marking the first such visit since the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro last month.
According to a Venezuelan government statement published on the platform “X,” Donovan met with interim President Delcy Rodríguez, Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino López, and Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello. The statement noted that both sides agreed to establish a “bilateral cooperation agenda” focused on combating drug trafficking, terrorism, and migration.
The U.S. Embassy in Caracas published a photo of Donovan during his visit, stating that he first met with U.S. military personnel assigned to guard embassy facilities before holding meetings with the interim authorities to assess the security situation. The embassy described the discussions as productive, emphasizing that they centered on the security environment and the steps required to implement President Donald Trump’s three-phase plan, particularly with regard to stabilizing Venezuela and reinforcing shared security across the Western Hemisphere.
The visit follows last month’s U.S. military operation that removed Maduro from power and transferred him to New York to face drug trafficking charges, according to Washington.
Trump had appointed Donovan in December, just days before the operation, which triggered mixed reactions across the region. Previously, Southcom had carried out dozens of strikes against vessels that Washington said were transporting narcotics in the Caribbean, though no public evidence was presented. Reports indicated that more than 130 people were killed in those operations, with some families and governments claiming the victims were fishermen.
According to Reuters, Donovan was accompanied by senior U.S. Department of Defense official Joseph Homer in what was described as the first visit by a U.S. military delegation to Caracas in years. The Pentagon also referred to the meetings as part of broader security coordination efforts.
The developments come shortly after U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright visited the Venezuelan capital, underscoring what observers describe as the Trump administration’s strategy of combining military pressure and energy policy tools to push Caracas toward wide-ranging reforms.
