Lapatilla
The Trump administration is about to announce that it has formally confiscated a plane of the Venezuelan regime that was retained in the Dominican Republic since last year, a measure that can complicate efforts to cooperate in deportations.
By: Bloomberg
The Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, is expected to announce the seizure this week, said people familiar with the situation, who requested anonymity to discuss delicate issues.
The plane used by the Venezuelan vice president Delcy Rodríguez was initially retained by the Dominican authorities last year, when Joe Biden was still in the White House, but the process for the United States to confiscate him for apparent violations of the sanctions was completed only after That Donald Trump assumed the position, the people said. Rodríguez was not on the plane at that time.
The seizure highlights the visions faced on Venezuela within the Trump government, with some officials seeking the help of President Nicolás Maduro in immigration issues, while Rubio and others favor a hard line approach towards the leader to whom the United States accused to steal a choice last July.
Last week, the special envoy Richard Grenell achieved the release of six American citizens detained in Venezuela, along with Maduro’s commitment to accept deportation flights from the United States. It was an early victory for the government, given its efforts to increase deportations and Maduro’s previous refusal to receive such flights.
But Rubio, a former Florida senator who will visit the Dominican Republic as part of a trip through Latin America this week, has promoted a return to the most aggressive strategy that Trump used during his previous presidency, when he imposed strong sanctions on Venezuela and sought to overthrow Maduro recognizing the former opposition chief Juan Guaidó as the country’s legitimate leader.
The operation to confiscate Rodriguez’s plane was coordinated between the United States National Security Department and the Dominican Republic Government, according to people familiar with the matter.
You can read the full note in Bloomberg
