US Begins Phased Plan to Reopen Embassy in Venezuela After Maduro’s Ouster

The United States is taking initial steps toward the possible phased reopening of its embassy in Caracas, Venezuela, marking the first formal indication that Washington may restore diplomatic ties after years of rupture following the departure of former President Nicolás Maduro. The move comes amid evolving US policy in the region and signals a cautious diplomatic shift in relations between the two nations.

In a notice sent to ten congressional committees, the United States Department of State outlined plans to deploy a regular and gradually expanding team of personnel to Venezuela to carry out select diplomatic functions. The embassy in Caracas has remained closed since March 2019, when diplomatic relations were severed.

According to the notice — the first formal communication from the Trump administration on the matter — the phased approach would begin with a contingent of temporary staff living and working from provisional facilities in Caracas while the original embassy compound undergoes assessment and upgrades to meet operational and security standards. Over time, the scope of work is expected to expand to include a wider range of consular, political, economic, and public diplomacy activities.

The notification was delivered to lawmakers just ahead of scheduled testimony by Marco Rubio before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on US policy toward Venezuela. This timing underscores the growing congressional interest and oversight of the administration’s approach to Washington’s evolving diplomatic posture in the Western Hemisphere.

Shortly after the regime change in Venezuela, a small team from the US Venezuela Affairs Unit based in Bogotá, Colombia, travelled to Caracas to conduct an initial assessment of conditions on the ground and evaluate the feasibility of resuming embassy operations. A Bogota-based career diplomat was subsequently appointed as chargé d’affaires for Venezuela, reflecting incremental steps toward re-engagement.

State Department officials have described the process as deliberately incremental. The initial phase will prioritise basic functions such as security and management, with future phases potentially adding consular services, political engagement, and economic diplomacy as conditions permit. The goal is to ensure a safe and orderly transition back to a fully operational diplomatic presence.

Analysts note that reopening the embassy would be a significant diplomatic milestone, symbolising a broader shift in US-Venezuela relations after years of sanctions, isolation, and mutual distrust. Formal restoration of full diplomatic ties, however, would require Washington to reconsider its previous position recognising Venezuela’s 2015 parliament as the legitimate governing body — a stance that underpinned the closure of the embassy in 2019.

The proposed embassy reopening also occurs amid wider debates in the United States over its role in Venezuela following the capture and removal of Maduro earlier this month. While some lawmakers have expressed support for normalising relations as a means to bolster stability and engage constructively with Venezuela’s interim authorities, others have urged caution, calling for clear human rights guarantees and political reforms as a precondition.

As the phased approach unfolds, the United States will likely continue testing diplomatic engagement with targeted staff deployments and incremental expansion of mission capabilities. The evolution of this strategy will be closely watched by both domestic observers and international partners interested in the future of US-Venezuela relations.