Venezuela government, opposition agree to top court reform — SkimNews
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- Venezuelan government and opposition appointed a seven-member panel to review the system used to select candidates for the Supreme Court of Justice and agreed to continue analyzing legislative instruments needed for judicial transformation.
- The government delegation was led by National Assembly chief Jorge Rodriguez; the opposition was represented by Dinorah Figuera, who led the bloc that won Venezuela's last internationally recognized election in 2015.
- The initial August talks had already produced an agreement to overhaul the judicial system and pursue the return of Venezuelan assets frozen by the Bank of England; the next round of talks is scheduled for next month.
- Critics compared the broader arrangement — which includes a deal granting the US control over large parts of Venezuela's oil reserves — to terms previously imposed on oil-rich nations by colonial powers such as Great Britain.
- Rights groups noted that the repressive apparatus of the Maduro era has remained in place despite promises of change from the new government.
- Interim President Rodriguez promised elections during her UNGA speech without giving a firm timeline; Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Trump and Rodriguez also discussed restructuring billions in Venezuela's sovereign debt on the sidelines — Rodriguez's first US visit since the abduction of her predecessor Nicolas Maduro in January.
Why it matters: Venezuela's interim government can point to a concrete judicial-reform deliverable, but critics compare the broader arrangement — including US control over much of Venezuela's oil — to colonial-era deals, and rights groups say the Maduro-era repressive apparatus remains intact, calling into question how genuinely 'open' the political opening actually is.
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