Brazilian Billionaire Flies To Venezuela To Call On Maduro To Step Down
- 4.12.2025, 9:30
- 4,012
The visit took place in secret.
Brazilian businessman Joesley Batista, co-owner of meat giant JBS, has secretly visited Caracas to try to reduce tensions between the United States and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
According to Bloomberg citing sources.
The publication said Batista arrived in Venezuela on Nov. 23 and met with Maduro in an attempt to persuade him to respond to U.S. President Donald Trump's call for him to step down and agree to a "peaceful transition of power." The visit came days after Trump's phone call with Maduro, during which the US leader again demanded his departure.
Sources emphasized: the Trump administration was aware of the trip, but Batista acted on his own initiative and did not represent the US.
"Joesley Batista is not a representative of any government," Batista family management company J&F SA said.
The context of the visit is a period of rapidly deteriorating relations between the U.S. and Venezuela. Trump has threatened strikes against the country after a series of U.S. Navy attacks on suspected drug boats off the coasts of Venezuela and Colombia. According to the U.S., Maduro's regime is "illegal" and involved in the transit of Colombian cocaine, resulting in the deaths of Americans.
Batista, according to Bloomberg, has become another participant in informal attempts at dialog that already involve U.S. special envoy Richard Grenell, representatives of Qatar, and investors linked to Venezuela's oil and gas sector. All initiatives are aimed at preventing escalation after more than 20 "narco-sudden" attacks and the largest US military deployment in the region in decades.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio doubted in a recent interview that Washington could strike a sustainable deal with Maduro, noting that the latter had "repeatedly broken his promises." However, he acknowledged that "it's worth trying."
Batista maintains working ties with both Trump's entourage and Venezuelan authorities. JBS owns American Pilgrim's Pride, which donated $5 million to the current U.S. leader's inauguration. At the same time, the company previously supplied Venezuela with meat under a $2.1 billion contract.
Batista himself, according to Bloomberg, is a figure with a turbulent past. He has been involved in the biggest corruption schemes in Brazil's history, and in 2017 he became a key witness against President Michel Temer, recording a secret meeting in exchange for immunity.
In the meantime, the US continued its pressure on Caracas: the day after Batista's visit, Washington recognized the Sunshine Cartel, a drug cartel linked to Maduro and senior officials, as a foreign terrorist organization.
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