Top US commander for Latin America makes surprise visit to Venezuela

By Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali

WASHINGTON, Feb 18 (Reuters) – The top commander overseeing U.S. forces in Latin America, General Francis Donovan, and senior Pentagon official Joseph Humire made a surprise visit to Venezuela on Wednesday for talks with officials in Caracas, U.S. officials said.

The trip is the first by a U.S. military delegation since U.S. forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in an audacious raid last month and whisked him to New York to face drug-trafficking charges. The visit was first reported by Reuters.

It follows a visit last week by U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright to Caracas.

The two trips highlight President Donald Trump’s efforts to use military might and energy policy to push Venezuela to carry out sweeping reforms.

Donovan and Humire discussed security issues with Venezuelan officials alongside the new U.S. envoy to the country, Laura Dogu, according to the U.S. military’s Southern Command.

“Discussions focused on the security environment, steps to ensure the implementation of President Donald Trump’s three-phase plan – particularly the stabilization of Venezuela – and the importance of shared security across the Western Hemisphere,” Southern Command said in a post on X.

A post on X signed by Dogu called it “another historic day” and said Donovan’s trip began with meetings with U.S. military personnel overseeing facilities at the embassy.

“He then met with the interim authorities to assess the security situation … and advance the objective of a Venezuela aligned with the United States,” Dogu said in the post.

Visits to Caracas by high-ranking U.S. officials have been virtually nonexistent in recent years, as the bilateral relationship with former President Hugo Chavez and then Maduro was strained.

(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali; Editing by Edmund Klamann)