U.S. President Donald Trump and Venezuela's interim President Delcy Rodríguez discussed debt restructuring at a Tuesday reception on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said. Venezuela's external debt has been in default since 2017.
Venezuela announced in May it would begin restructuring its external debt. The government and state oil company Petróleos de Venezuela have about $60 billion in defaulted bonds outstanding. Analysts estimate total liabilities, including arbitration awards and accrued interest, could reach $150 billion to $200 billion, but Venezuela has not published comprehensive debt statistics in years.
Rubio said Washington wanted to help, calling debt restructuring key to Venezuela's success but saying it had to be done in the right way. Rodríguez's New York visit was her first to the U.S. since U.S. forces captured then-President Nicolás Maduro in a January raid. Her delegation held talks on energy, mining and debt with U.S. officials, multilateral lenders and companies. The Inter-American Development Bank chief is working to secure approval for a $2.5 billion loan, but some board members have pushed back; approval would be a milestone in restarting lending.
