MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

US appoints career diplomat Laura Dogu as new mission chief for Venezuela amid thaw signals

Dogu is a career diplomat with more than 30 years of service, including stints as US ambassador to Honduras and Nicaragua

The United States has named veteran Foreign Service officer Laura Dogu as its new mission chief for Venezuela, a step that aligns with broader signs of a tentative diplomatic reset — including discussions about reopening embassies and plans for Venezuelan acting president Delcy Rodríguez to travel to Washington, though no dates or agenda have been disclosed.

Reuters reported the appointment after an update posted through the US representation handling Venezuela from Bogotá, where the State Department’s Venezuela Affairs Unit has operated since Washington and Caracas severed diplomatic ties in 2019.

Dogu is a career diplomat with more than 30 years of service, including stints as US ambassador to Honduras and Nicaragua, alongside senior roles linked to national security and interagency coordination. As chargé d’affaires, she effectively becomes Washington’s top diplomatic point-person on the ground in the absence of an ambassador and amid a still-fragile bilateral channel.

The move comes as the White House has indicated Rodríguez is expected to visit Washington “soon,” according to a US official quoted by EFE, without providing further details. Reuters has also reported that President Donald Trump has publicly backed the government led by Rodríguez following the US capture of Nicolás Maduro on January 3, saying his administration is “working very well” with Caracas.

Rodríguez, who is under US Treasury sanctions, has sought to frame any Washington trip as a posture of strength. Reuters quoted her as saying that if she were to go, she would do so “on her feet, walking — not crawling.” The opposition has pushed back. Reuters reported that opposition figure María Corina Machado said Rodríguez does not represent Venezuelans and characterized the arrangement as part of a “complex phase.”

Energy policy is central to the evolving relationship. AP reported Trump urging oil executives to invest in Venezuela and suggesting the US would “run” the country for an unspecified period during the transition, underscoring how hydrocarbons have become a core lever in Washington’s approach. Reuters, meanwhile, has detailed economic moves in Caracas after the US operation, with oil flows and external financing featured prominently.

Dogu’s appointment appears designed to give structure and continuity to that mix of political engagement and energy-driven bargaining, as both sides test whether an improvised channel can evolve into a more formal diplomatic track.