Rubio Backs Opposition Negotiator Figuera as Venezuela Dialogue Advances: Court Reform First, Electoral Council Next
CARACAS - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio hosted Venezuelan opposition lead negotiator Dinorah Figuera at the State Department and publicly backed the ongoing dialogue with the Venezuelan government. Venezuelanalysis reported on October 12 that Rubio called the talks the best opportunity Venezuela has had in almost a generation - a difficult process enjoying 100 percent support from the highest levels of the Trump administration. Washington's goal, he said, goes beyond holding an election, to building the institutions needed for long-term stability, prosperity and freedom.
Figuera presides over the National Assembly elected in 2015, whose term expired in 2021 but which the United States continued to recognise as Venezuela's legitimate authority. She said the opposition is committed to restoring the institutional framework of the public powers - the Supreme Court (TSJ) and the National Electoral Council (CNE) - guaranteeing political and civil rights and creating space for reunion and reconciliation, and she thanked Washington for investment in the oil sector. The talks sit inside the political transition framework formed after U.S. forces seized Nicolas Maduro on January 3.
Under an amendment to the Supreme Court's organic law negotiated at the dialogue table, the Judicial Nominations Committee will have a majority of 12 civil-society representatives against 11 lawmakers, and 127 citizens have applied to join the body. Once appointed, the committee will open applications for Supreme Court seats across its six chambers, and negotiators invited Venezuela's best legal professionals to apply. Rubio said future rounds will address reform of the National Electoral Council.
The two sides also agreed to jointly demand the release of 31 tonnes of Venezuelan gold held by the Bank of England since 2019, worth more than $4 billion, to address post-earthquake reconstruction; the gold would reportedly move to the New York Federal Reserve, with spending subject to U.S. approval and international auditing. The Venezuelan government's delegation has not commented on Washington's explicit backing for the opposition negotiators. The election date remains the core dispute: some opposition sectors demand a date for presidential elections now, while the negotiating delegation argues judicial reform is a necessary prior step.
Sources: Compiled from Venezuelanalysis' October 12, 2026 report on the Rubio-Figuera meeting and dialogue steps, carried by Occasional Digest.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 加拉加斯联邦立法宫西拱门，JuanJavierTG 摄，CC BY-SA 3.0（Wikimedia Commons）
