John Barrett named new top US diplomat in Venezuela

The top US diplomat in Venezuela announced on Wednesday that her assignment there is ending, as Washington named veteran diplomat John M. Barrett as the new charge d’affaires in the capital Caracas.

“My temporary assignment in Caracas is coming to an end, and I will return to my previous position as Foreign Policy Advisor to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States,” Laura F. Dogu said in a statement.

“I am pleased to announce that John Barrett will soon arrive in Venezuela to serve as the next charge d’affaires at the United States Embassy in Caracas,” she added.

Dogu said the US team in Caracas will continue advancing the administration’s “three-phase plan” as relations between the United States and Venezuela enter a “new stage” in the wake of a dramatic military operation there this January.

Dogu arrived in Caracas in January to lead efforts to restore the embassy and prepare for the full return of personnel and eventual resumption of consular services.

The embassy had been closed since 2019 after Washington recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as interim president and rejected Nicolas Maduro’s reelection.

Maduro currently remains in US custody following his abduction in an overnight US military raid in Caracas in early January.