Calling in from Panama, where she has been residing since leaving Venezuela, Nobel Peace Prize laureate María Corina Machado told a television network that the United States had no role in the Caracas negotiations between the Rodríguez-led government and a segment of the Venezuelan opposition.

Machado directed public criticism at Betancourt, a business figure who had reached an agreement with the Trump administration giving operational authority over oil fields that together hold around one-fifth of Venezuela's verified petroleum reserves. Machado characterised Betancourt as bearing considerable responsibility for the hardships facing Venezuelans at present, and pointed to what she described as deeply entrenched corrupt practices as a source of harm to the country's population. Machado indicated that, were she to lead a transitional democratic government, he would not be regarded as a suitable partner for trade negotiations.

Those remarks come at a time when Washington is engaged in parallel talks with both the Delcy Rodríguez administration and various opposition factions over the future political and economic trajectory of the South American nation.

Her account noted that Washington had kept her out of the Caracas negotiations that week, even though she held a position of opposition leadership and had taken part in Venezuela's electoral process. Pushback came from the State Department, which maintained that Machado's party had in fact been extended an invitation to take part. A department spokeswoman indicated that Machado holds an unconditional right to enter Venezuela at a time of her choosing.

Machado — who secured the opposition's 2023 primary vote and drove Edmundo González Urrutia's 2024 presidential bid — stated her intention to return sooner than her opponents might anticipate, with the aim of rallying her base ahead of forthcoming elections. Her openness to foreign investment came with a clear condition attached: contracts would need to conform to domestic legal standards, and those that did, she indicated, would be upheld.

Under the agreement, Betancourt-led North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP) would take on operating rights across 17 oil fields holding roughly 65 billion barrels of proven reserves. Under the arrangement, a 35% ownership stake in the parent entity passed to the Pentagon's Office of Strategic Capital, while a separate provision grants the State Department the option to purchase up to 20% of output at production cost.

Allegations of inflated pricing on government-awarded power plant contracts have placed Betancourt under scrutiny. Judicial inquiries across multiple countries have at various points taken aim at the arc of his career.

In a statement, Machado outlined three conditions she views as necessary for drawing greater investment into Venezuela: security, stability, and legitimacy. Among her proposals was the creation of an independent truth commission charged with cataloguing abuses, establishing reparations for those harmed, and ensuring that perpetrators face legal consequences.

Those remarks laid bare the gap between her political goals and the approach taken by the Trump administration, which opted to back continuity under Rodríguez after U.S. forces detained Nicolás Maduro on January 3. Machado told reporters her view has not wavered — she continues to believe a democratic transition is what Washington is pursuing.