President Donald Trump is wasting no time in reaching out to Venezuela in hopes of a new bilateral deal and better relations.
On Thursday night, Trump met with his new Presidential Envoy for Special Missions Ric Grenell in the Oval Office. Grenell departed Washington, D.C., for Venezuela earlier today. He is expected to arrive shortly in Caracas.
According to a source close to the White House, Trump has empowered Grenell to "do a deal" that breaks the logjam in relations between the two countries. But the specific purpose of Grenell's trip is to negotiate an orderly return of Venezuelan nationals illegally in the U.S.
Relations between the U.S. and Venezuela have long been difficult and tense. Under President Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela shred any pretense of being a democracy. Maduro took power in 2013 after the death of strongman Hugo Chavez.
The Trump administration slapped harsh economic sanctions on the Maduro regime, blocking most of their oil shipments to the U.S. In 2020, the first Trump administration's Justice Department indicted Maduro and other associates for cocaine trafficking and "narco-terrorism."
During the 2024 election, Trump called Maduro a dictator, but suggested he was open to talks. After Trump's 2024 win, Maduro said he would seek a "new start" with the U.S.
Grenell is one of President Trump's closest confidantes. During his first term, Grenell served as the U.S. ambassador to Germany and later as acting DNI chief in the Cabinet. At the time of his nomination last year, Trump said Grenell would be tasked with handling Venezuela and North Korea.
Earlier this month, Trump tapped Grenell to lead administration efforts to deal with the recent California wildfires.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.