US charge d'affaires Laura Dogu arrived in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas on Saturday, as the two countries chart a diplomatic way forward after the ouster of former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro by US forces. 

"I just arrived in Venezuela. My team and I are ready to work," Dogu posted on X.   

Dogu, a Spanish speaker, has extensive diplomatic experience in Latin America. She previously served as ambassador to Honduras and Nicaragua and had also served as deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in Mexico City. 

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil said he received Dogu in Caracas upon her arrival. 

He said this comes as the US and Venezuela are "charting a roadmap for work on matters of bilateral interest, as well as addressing and resolving existing differences through diplomatic dialogue and on the basis of mutual respect and international law."  

Dogu's arrival comes 7 years after Maduro cut off ties

Dogu will be tasked with rebuilding a diplomatic relationship with the current Venezuelan government of Acting President Delcy Rodriguez.

It comes seven years after Maduro cut off ties with the US in January 2019. US President Donald Trump at that time had recognized leader of the National Assembly Juan Guaido as the interim president of Venezuela, with Maduro in response ordering US diplomatic personnel to leave the country within 72 hours. 

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in a Senate hearing this week, said the US intends to reopen its embassy in Caracas and scale up its diplomatic presence in Venezuela.   

Trump has suggested that he could take further military action in Venezuela if Delcy Rodriguez's government doesn't comply with his demands, such as opening the Venezuelan oil industry to privatization. 

Rodriguez has since signed a bill reforming the state-owned oil sector and has also announced a mass amnesty law for political prisoners.   

Edited by: Sean Sinico