Overview
- Delegations led by Jorge Rodríguez for the government and Dinorah Figuera for the opposition met in person at La Carlota on Thursday and agreed to remain in session through August 12 while technical working groups set agendas.
- The talks focus first on urgent relief and reconstruction after the June 24 earthquake and on institutional steps to restore trust, including recomposing the National Electoral Council (CNE) and reinstituting the Supreme Court (TSJ).
- The U.S. embassy in Caracas publicly backed the process, a stance that gives the negotiations diplomatic weight and influences which opposition actors Washington prioritizes.
- Media access was tightly restricted during the installation and the National Union of Press Workers reported that a journalist was intercepted, had images deleted from her phone, and had her press ID photographed, raising transparency and safety concerns.
- Prominent figures such as María Corina Machado are excluded from the table, so any outcome will be judged on concrete, verifiable steps like political prisoner releases and a clear electoral timetable before broader opposition acceptance is likely.