US takes early steps to reopen embassy in Venezuela

The United States government has formally informed Congress that it is initiating steps that could lead to the reopening of its embassy in Caracas, over six years after diplomatic relations with Venezuela were severed.

In a letter dated 26 January and sent to ten House and Senate committees, the State Department outlined a phased plan under which a regular contingent of temporary staff will be deployed to Venezuela’s capital to carry out limited diplomatic duties.

These personnel are expected to live and work from a temporary facility while the main embassy compound is brought up to operational and security standards.

The shuttered embassy in Caracas has been closed since March 2019, when ties between Washington and Caracas were broken amid rising tensions between the two governments.

The initial phase will focus on “select” functions such as security and management, with responsibilities expanding over time to encompass consular, political, economic and public-diplomacy work if conditions allow.

A Bogota-based career diplomat has been named as chargé d’affaires for Venezuela, and the Venezuela Affairs Unit currently operating out of the US embassy in Colombia is expected to relocate to Caracas.

The congressional notification comes against the backdrop of a dramatic shift in the political landscape in Venezuela, including the recent US military operation that removed Nicolás Maduro from power. It also precedes testimony by secretary of state Marco Rubio before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Washington’s evolving policy towards Venezuela.

State Department officials have emphasised that the notification to lawmakers is a preparatory measure, part of a cautious and incremental process that could ultimately lead to full diplomatic normalisation, depending on developments on the ground.

With agency inputs