US-Backed Venezuela Government-Opposition 'Democracy Talks' Announced

July 31, 2026 — The Venezuelan government and an opposition bloc announced US-backed 'democracy talks' aimed at electoral and judicial reform as a path toward elections, set to begin August 1 in Caracas. Nobel laureate María Corina Machado was excluded from direct participation, though she said she would not obstruct the process. The talks followed the January 3, 2026 US operation that captured President Nicolás Maduro on narco-terrorism charges, after which Vice President Delcy Rodríguez became acting president.