US officials held secret talks with Venezuelan powerbroker Diosdado Cabello long before January’s operation to oust Maduro.
Secret US-Venezuela Talks Began Before January Operation
Contacts began long before the American operation on January 3, which aimed to arrest President Nicolás Maduro, and were maintained after it. The talks reveal a tactical game for the stability of Caracas’ security apparatus—a game burdened by sanctions, US indictments, and the real risk of violence escalation.
According to information from four sources familiar with the talks, American officials warned 62-year-old Cabello not to activate security structures or controlled militias to attack the opposition. This concerned the apparatus, which includes intelligence services, police, and armed formations—largely untouched by the American raid on January 3.
Sources emphasize that communication with Cabello was conducted both directly and through intermediates, beginning in the first months of the Trump administration and continuing after the US sidelined Maduro.
Security Apparatus Remained Intact After Raid
The January 3 raid did not dismantle Venezuela’s coercion apparatus. Counterintelligence services, police, and related formations remained operationally effective. This is precisely why—according to interlocutors—the Trump administration focused on preventing the use of force against the opposition and maintaining minimal stability, even at the cost of contacts with a person subject to sanctions and a US indictment.
Cabello’s name appears in the same drug trafficking indictment that the Trump administration used as justification for Maduro’s arrest. However, Cabello was not the target of the January operation.
Cabello: A Powerful Figure in Venezuela
Cabello has long been considered the second most powerful figure in Venezuela. A former military officer and close collaborator of Hugo Chávez, mentor of Maduro, he became one of the most feared enforcers of repression. He influenced military and civilian counterintelligence agencies conducting extensive spy operations, and maintained close ties with pro-government militias—especially with colectivos, armed groups of civilians on motorcycles sent to disperse protests.
For years, Cabello and Delcy Rodríguez operated at the very center of government, parliament, and the ruling socialist party, but they were not considered close allies. Cabello publicly declared unity with Rodríguez, whom Trump has praised, but in Washington there remains concern that his past repression and internal rivalry within the ruling camp could derail American plans.
Strategic Importance of Communication
The United States perceives Rodríguez as a pillar of the post-Maduro strategy. At the same time, it is widely believed that it is Cabello who possesses the real force capable of maintaining—or blocking—these plans. According to Reuters’ conversations with sources in Venezuela, Rodríguez is strengthening her position by appointing trusted people to key positions to neutralize internal threats while meeting US demands for increased oil production.
Cabello has long been subject to US sanctions for alleged drug trafficking. In 2020, the United States offered a $10 million reward for information leading to his arrest and accused him of being a key figure in the “Cartel de los Soles”—a drug trafficking network that, according to the US, is run by members of the Venezuelan government.
After Maduro was sidelined from power, questions arose in Washington why the US did not also arrest Cabello, who was listed second in the Department of Justice indictment against Maduro.
