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Overview
- During a White House meeting on Jan. 15, Trump thanked María Corina Machado for the symbolic gift and the White House released a photo of him holding the framed medal.
- U.S. outreach to Caracas intensified as CIA Director John Ratcliffe met interim president Delcy Rodríguez in the capital after Trump's phone call with her to discuss oil, minerals, trade and security.
- Officials said the Ratcliffe visit aimed to set expectations for better working ties with the interim government, even as Trump has declined to back Machado to lead Venezuela.
- The United States confirmed a first $500 million sale of seized Venezuelan oil and reported the capture of a sixth sanctioned tanker, with proceeds directed to Treasury-controlled accounts.
- Machado told Fox News she expects to become president when the time is right and later said Venezuela is entering a real transition, while Norwegian media derided her medal handoff.