Rubio Hosts Venezuela's New Foreign Minister in First Top-Level Talks

Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted Venezuela’s newly appointed foreign minister, Oliver Blanco, at the State Department on Monday, in what the Spanish news agency EFE described as the first meeting between the two countries’ top diplomats since diplomatic relations were restored following the capture of Nicolás Maduro earlier this year.

The meeting appeared on the State Department’s official public schedule for November 2, which listed Rubio meeting “with Venezuelan Foreign Minister Oliver Blanco at the Department of State” at noon Eastern time, with a camera spray at the top. An Associated Press photograph taken Monday shows the two men together at the department in Washington.

.@SecRubio has met with Venezuela's newly appointed foreign minister, Oliver Blanco, at the State Department.

Watch OAN on OAN Live for more updates. pic.twitter.com/ZvbOKEfAuL

— One America News (@OANN) November 2, 2026

According to EFE, as reported by Ecuador’s El Universo, Rubio and Blanco posed briefly for cameras between the U.S. and Venezuelan flags shortly after noon but did not answer reporters’ questions or issue a statement. EFE reported that both men wore serious expressions and skipped the customary handshake for the cameras. Venezuela’s El Nacional likewise reported that neither official took questions, and said the meeting had originally been planned for 10 a.m. local time.

Who is Oliver Blanco?

Blanco took over Venezuela’s foreign ministry on October 29, appointed by acting President Delcy Rodríguez, according to El Nacional. He replaced Félix Plasencia, who was moved to lead international affairs for the Venezuelan presidency, according to both El Nacional and the Venezuelan outlet Últimas Noticias.

Before traveling to Washington, Blanco met on Friday in Caracas with John Barrett, the chargé d’affaires at the U.S. Embassy, according to El Nacional and EFE. After that meeting, Blanco posted on X that Venezuela was recommitting to strengthen dialogue and cooperation with the United States under Rodríguez’s leadership, according to EFE’s Spanish-language report.

Últimas Noticias, a Caracas outlet, described the Washington session as a working meeting aimed at consolidating the bilateral agenda between the two nations.

Elections still the open question

The meeting comes days after Rodríguez announced that Venezuela will hold “all” of the elections its constitution requires, though she did not give a date, according to EFE. EFE also reported that the Trump administration backs a roadmap to renew key Venezuelan institutions in the coming months, a process that would lead Rodríguez to declare the presidency vacant in 2027 and open a six-month window for elections.

Opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner María Corina Machado returned to Venezuela on October 25 after nearly a year abroad, during which she repeatedly demanded elections, according to EFE and El Nacional.

For the Trump administration, the session puts Rubio, a longtime critic of the Chavista regime, face to face with the government that replaced Maduro, as Washington presses for a path to free elections. Neither the State Department nor Venezuela’s foreign ministry had released a readout of what was discussed as of Monday afternoon, based on the reports reviewed by Daily Beltway.

Sources

• U.S. Department of State, Public Schedule, November 2, 2026
• Associated Press photo, November 2, 2026
• EFE via El Universo
• El Nacional
• Últimas Noticias
• One America News on X

Reporting by Daily Beltway.