Overview
- U.S. officials engaged Cabello directly and through intermediaries from early in President Trump’s term through the weeks surrounding the Jan. 3 operation that captured Nicolás Maduro.
- Envoys warned Cabello not to deploy security services, intelligence units, or allied colectivos against the opposition during the transition period.
- Cabello remains under U.S. sanctions and a 2020 Justice Department narcotics indictment with multimillion‑dollar rewards, yet he was not detained during the Jan. 3 operation.
- Washington views Delcy Rodríguez as central to a post‑Maduro framework, while Cabello is seen as capable of either enabling or undermining that plan.
- It remains unclear whether the talks touched on future governance, and rights groups say promised releases of political prisoners—reportedly overseen by Cabello—are moving slowly as reported checkpoints recede.