US working well with Venezuela’s interim leader

US President Donald Trump said Sunday his administration was working well with Venezuela’s interim leader Delcy Rodriguez -- and that he would be open to meeting with her.

Trump’s upbeat remarks came just over a week after Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro was seized in a US special forces raid and brought to New York to face drug trafficking charges.

Trump has said that the United States now has de facto control of Venezuela, as it enforces a naval blockade of the South American nation’s vital oil exports.

Rodriguez, despite being a close Maduro ally, has indicated a willingness to work with the United States, saying she is open to cooperate on Trump’s demands for access to Venezuelan oil.

Venezuela said yesterday that 116 political prisoners have been released since the government announced last week it would begin freeing those jailed under president Maduro.

“Venezuela is really working out well. We’re working along really well with the leadership,” Trump told reporters Sunday aboard Air Force One. 

Asked if he planned to meet with Rodriguez, Trump said: “At some point I’ll be.”