Rubio Leads US Negotiations for Long-Term Military Presence in Venezuela

The United States is working on a deal that could put American troops in Venezuela for the long haul, according to a Tuesday report from The New York Times. The newspaper, citing US officials, says the agreement is a status of forces agreement (SOFA), a legal framework for US military operations in a foreign country. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is leading the negotiations, per the report.

The specifics are still up in the air. The number of US troops and the locations where they'd operate will be decided in future agreements, the report says. So for now, the talks are about setting the stage, not finalizing a deployment.

The State Department has a playbook for this. It says it has reached SOFA deals with over 100 countries, according to its previous statements. The department has described these agreements as a way to promote defense cooperation by giving US forces a clear legal framework for joint activities with partner nations, including ship visits, training, exercises, and humanitarian assistance.

A long-term US military footprint in Venezuela would be a major development, given the two nations' historically strained relationship. The report relies on unnamed US officials, so the full scope of the plan remains unconfirmed. The State Department has not publicly detailed the negotiations.

What's next? The talks are ongoing, with Rubio at the helm, according to The New York Times. No timeline or signing date has been reported. If the SOFA comes together, it would pave the way for follow-on agreements on troop numbers and locations.