In a shocking revelation, a leaked recording has shed light on the Venezuelan regime’s frantic efforts to regain control of the narrative following the capture of President Nicolás Maduro by US forces. The recording features interim President Delcy Rodríguez addressing a group of regime-friendly influencers, where she claims that she and other cabinet members were given just 15 minutes to decide whether to comply with Washington’s demands or face execution.
The nearly two-hour meeting, held seven days after the US attack, provides a rare glimpse into the inner workings of Venezuela’s Chavista regime. Rodríguez, the former vice-president who assumed power after the US intervention, is heard saying that the “threats and blackmail are constant” and that her priority was “to preserve political power.”
The recording reveals the surviving regime figures’ concerns about being branded as traitors and their attempts to prevent their political movement from fracturing from within. Rodríguez is heard referring to the US military operation, stating that the threats began “from the very first minute they kidnapped the president” and that she, along with Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello and Congressional President Jorge Rodríguez, were given 15 minutes to respond or be killed.
The leaked video, first reported by the local journalism collective La Hora de Venezuela, also features the then-Communications Minister, Freddy Ñáñez, defending Rodríguez and calling for “gossip, rumours, intrigues and attempts at discrediting” her to be shut down. Ñáñez argues that Rodríguez is “the only guarantee we have that… we can bring back the president and the first lady – but also turn the page and reconfigure our forces.”
Since Maduro’s capture and rendition, Rodríguez has walked a fine line, voicing defiance at home but signalling to Washington that she is ready to cooperate with the Trump administration. The historian and political analyst Margarita López Maya suggests that the death threat narrative may be a construct by Rodríguez herself to hold the base together, as “everyone knows that Maduro’s removal could only have happened with internal complicity.”
The leaked recording highlights the regime’s desperate struggle to control the message and maintain its grip on power in the face of Maduro’s downfall. As the country navigates this uncertain political landscape, the future remains unclear, with the prospect of a democratic transition or continued authoritarian rule under US influence hanging in the balance.