For the first time in seven years, the United States flag has been hoisted above its embassy in Caracas, marking a renewed diplomatic relationship with Venezuela after the arrest of former president Nicolás Madura.
The flag was raised during a ceremony led by the United States’ top diplomat in Venezuela, Laura Dogu, who described the moment as the beginning of a new chapter in relations between the two countries.
Dogu said the flag was raised exactly seven years after it was taken down in March 2019, when Venezuela cut diplomatic relations with the United States.
The symbolic move signals a major shift in relations between Washington and Caracas, which severed diplomatic ties in 2019 following disputes over Maduro’s contested re-election.
Relations between the two nations began to improve earlier this year after U.S. forces captured Maduro during a military operation in January and flew him to New York to face drug-trafficking charges.
Since then, Washington and Venezuela’s interim leadership have taken steps to restore diplomatic engagement and reopen channels for cooperation, including discussions around economic reforms and energy investments.
The embassy building in Caracas is still undergoing renovations, and officials have not yet confirmed when it will fully reopen to the public.
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