Venezuela's newly sworn in interim President Delcy Rodriguez was seen by US officials as a pliant option for Venezuela's interim leadership, according to reports.
The Trump administration had decided on Rodriguez taking the helm weeks before the early Saturday operation that led to the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, followed by their subsequent transfer to New York to face criminal charges, The New York Times reported, citing a senior official.
The report said Rodriguez, who held both the positions of vice president and oil minister, had "impressed" Washington with her handling of Venezuela's critical oil sector and a perceived willingness to engage with Washington.
The daily quoted one senior US official as saying "I've been watching her career for a long time, so I have some sense of who she is and what she's about."
Rodriguez was not viewed as a permanent solution but as someone with whom a professional working relationship could be established, the official told The New York Times.
After Maduro's capture, Venezuela's Supreme Court directed Rodriguez to "immediately" assume the post of acting president. US President Donald Trump has vowed to assert American control over the country for the time being, including by deploying US troops if necessary.
On Monday, Rodriguez was formally sworn in as interim president before Venezuela's National Assembly, where Maduro's son, Nicolas Maduro Guerra, pledging her his "unconditional support."
A day earlier, she had urged Trump to work together on an "agenda of cooperation."
While Trump has threatened action if Rodriguez does not fall in line with his administration's vision for her country, he has also said Secretary of State Marco Rubio had been in communication with her and that she was open to working with Washington.
In a separate interview on Monday, Trump denied reports that US officials had contacted Rodriguez or figures close to her before the operation on Saturday.
