U.S. Flag Raised Over Embassy in Caracas for First Time in Seven Years

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — The United States flag was raised above its embassy in Venezuela on Saturday for the first time in seven years, marking a symbolic restoration of diplomatic relations that had been severed in 2019. The move comes after the U.S. capture of former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro earlier this year and a rapid thaw in bilateral ties.

U.S. Charge d’Affaires Laura Dogu — the embassy’s senior diplomat — shared an image of the Stars and Stripes being raised outside the embassy in Caracas on X, writing, “A new era has begun. We’re staying with Venezuela.”

She noted that the flag was restored “exactly seven years after it was removed” on March 14, 2019, two months after Caracas cut ties with Washington over its refusal to recognize Maduro’s disputed 2018 re‑election.

The reopening of the embassy follows a dramatic shift in the diplomatic landscape triggered by a U.S. special forces raid in January 2026 that killed around 100 people and resulted in the capture of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, who were flown to New York to face drug trafficking charges.

The operation and subsequent leadership changes have helped pave the way for renewed engagement between Washington and Caracas.

Since then, relations have warmed rapidly. President Donald Trump’s administration has said it now effectively oversees Venezuela’s governance and control of its vast natural resource wealth following Maduro’s ouster.

Trump and Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez — Maduro’s former deputy — have signed energy and mining agreements that are expected to attract private investment and grant U.S. firms access to some of the world’s largest oil reserves.

Rodríguez has called on the United States to fully lift the sanctions that remained in place years after ties were broken.

The United States has eased portions of the seven‑year‑old oil embargo on Venezuela and issued licenses allowing select multinational companies to operate in the country’s oil sector under certain conditions.

These steps are part of broader efforts to stabilize relations and reopen economic channels between the two nations after years of diplomatic estrangement.

The flag‑raising ceremony drew attention from local residents in Caracas, many of whom expressed hope for improved international relations and economic progress. However, critics within Venezuelan society and its political establishment remain wary of U.S. influence, especially given Trump’s military intervention and growing American presence in the country’s strategic oil industry.