Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, arrived in New York on Monday for the 81st United Nations General Assembly, where she is expected to meet President Donald Trump in the highest-level encounter between U.S. and Venezuelan leaders in more than a decade.
"We arrive in New York with the determination and hope of a people who believe in dialogue and unity among nations," Rodríguez said after landing, adding that Venezuela would attend the General Assembly to "bring its voice and defend its principles," with an agenda based on "respect, cooperation and understanding," according to Europa Press.
Rodríguez and Trump are scheduled to meet Tuesday on the sidelines of the gathering, according to the White House. It will be their first face-to-face meeting and the first encounter between the leaders of the two countries since Barack Obama and Nicolás Maduro briefly met at the Summit of the Americas in Panama in 2015.
Her arrival marks another step in the shift in relations between Washington and Caracas this year. The countries restored diplomatic relations in March after a seven-year rupture, following the U.S. military operation in Venezuela in January that resulted in Maduro's capture. He is currently imprisoned in New York awaiting trial.
The Trump administration has since developed closer ties with Rodríguez's government, including an agreement announced in August giving the United States majority control over a portion of Venezuela's oil reserves and opening the sector to additional private investment.
Rodríguez's visit comes as opposition leader María Corina Machado has announced that she intends to return to Venezuela after months abroad, although she has not set a date. Machado, who is currently in Panama, said it was "time to return" and argued that she could not lead the political process from outside the country.
Her planned return could add another element to Venezuela's political transition as Washington continues to work with Rodríguez's government while Machado pushes for new elections.
At the UN, however, Venezuela continues to face scrutiny over its human-rights record. Caracas last week called for an end to the mandate of the UN fact-finding mission investigating abuses in the country, while the mission has maintained that state structures associated with repression remain in place.
