Trump meets Venezuela's Delcy Rodriguez at UN reception

President Donald Trump met with Venezuela's interim president Delcy Rodriguez on Tuesday during a reception at the Lotte Palace Hotel on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. It was their first face-to-face encounter since U.S. forces captured former President Nicolas Maduro in January, leaving Rodriguez in charge of the OPEC member under Washington's supervision.

Rodriguez arrived with a delegation including the economic vice president, the hydrocarbons minister, and officials from state oil company PDVSA. Sources close to the delegation said their focus is projecting an image attractive to investors. Trump has touted a recent oil agreement with Caracas as potentially "the biggest deal ever made" and said he wants $100 billion in investment to flow.

“"To the victor belong the spoils," Trump said, calling the oil deal "perhaps the biggest deal ever made."”

The meeting took place in a closed 'pull-aside' format without media access, not even the White House press pool. U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz confirmed the format days earlier. Critics argue the engagement sidelines opposition leader Maria Corina Machado and drops demands for free elections in favor of energy accords.

Earlier Tuesday, Trump addressed the General Assembly, calling Maduro an "outlaw dictator" and claiming hundreds of political prisoners had been freed since his capture. He framed the operation as proof the U.S. would use its "unmatched military power" to protect hemispheric interests. A small group of Venezuelans protested in New York demanding elections.

Rodriguez is expected to address the General Assembly on Wednesday afternoon. The encounter marks 263 days since the January 3 operation that began the current U.S.-Venezuela relationship centered on territorial control and oil.