It has emerged that U.S. officials held secret talks with Venezuela’s Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello months before the U.S. raid in which Maduro was captured, and that these contacts have continued since then.
Washington warned Cabello against using security forces or pro-government militias against the opposition. The talks also addressed U.S. sanctions and the drug trafficking indictment that Cabello is facing.
Long regarded as Maduro’s top enforcer, Cabello was not arrested and continues to maintain control over key security institutions.