DID Press: A Republican senator has disclosed that the United States offered Nicolás Maduro a guaranteed safe exit for himself and his family to Russia or a third country if he agreed to step down immediately—a proposal that collapsed after Maduro rejected it and talks deadlocked on three key issues.
Markwayne Mullin, a Republican senator, told CNN that Washington had given the Venezuelan president an opportunity to leave the country for Russia or another destination. He stressed that former U.S. President Donald Trump had no intention of deploying military forces to Venezuela and that Washington’s aim was to “protect its own shores.”
According to the Miami Herald, Trump told Maduro in a phone call last week that safe passage for him, his wife and his son would be guaranteed only if he relinquished power at once—an offer the Venezuelan leader rejected.
Maduro, in turn, put forward a proposal under which the opposition would assume political administration of the country while the current government retained full control of the armed forces. Washington declined this proposal as well.
Sources familiar with the talks say negotiations collapsed over three main issues:
Maduro’s demand for full international amnesty, his insistence on retaining complete control of the military, and disagreement over timing; Washington required an immediate resignation, while Caracas rejected that condition.
After Trump announced that consider Venezuelan airspace as “entirely closed,” Maduro government made a renewed attempt to open communication with Washington, but has not received a clear response.