Venezuela's interim President Delcy Rodríguez arrived in the United States on September 21 to represent her country at the UN General Assembly, where she is due to meet US President Donald Trump on September 22 for the first time.

The White House announced the meeting on September 18, following an Axios report last week that Trump was considering talks with Rodríguez. It will take place on the sidelines of the assembly in New York and will be the first between a US president and a Venezuelan leader in more than 11 years, since Barack Obama briefly met then-president Nicolás Maduro at the 2015 Summit of the Americas in Panama.

Rodríguez landed at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, where she was received by Economy Vice President Calixto Ortega and First Deputy Foreign Minister Oliver Blanco, according to a video posted on X by Venezuelan communications chief Miguel Ángel Pérez Pirela. US chargé d'affaires in Venezuela John Barrett was also present.

"We arrived in New York with the firmness and hope of a people who believe in the encounter and union between nations," Rodríguez said on X.

She said Venezuela would be at the 81st General Assembly "to make its voice heard and defend its principles", with an agenda based on respect, cooperation and understanding, and described the country as committed to peace and dialogue.

The Communication Ministry said Venezuela had rejoined "the diplomatic dynamic of the planet" thanks to earlier efforts.

Rodríguez is scheduled to address the general debate on September 24, after Uruguay and Senegal. The session runs until September 28 under the theme "Restoring trust, managing transformation: a United Nations that delivers for all". More than 190 world leaders are expected, including 98 presidents and 44 prime ministers.

Maduro was the last Venezuelan head of state to visit the United States for the assembly, in 2018. He is now held in a New York prison a few kilometres from the UN after US forces captured him in Caracas in January. He and his wife, Cilia Flores, face narcoterrorism charges, which Maduro denies.

The Trump administration views Venezuela as its top foreign policy success, as it grapples with setbacks elsewhere, including Iran and Ukraine. Trump has called Rodríguez, who remained under US sanctions until last April, a "terrific person" who is "doing a great job." The White House has controversially opted to work with her, a former Maduro deputy, to open up Venezuela's oil and mineral riches to US investors, sidelining opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.

Ties between Washington and Caracas have shifted markedly since January. On August 28, Trump announced an oil agreement giving a Washington-backed venture effective majority control of 17 Venezuelan oilfields estimated to hold 65bn barrels of crude. The deal promises more than $100bn in investment and upwards of $209bn in tax revenue for Caracas, according to figures released by the administration.

The State Department on September 16 removed Venezuela from its list of countries judged to have "failed demonstrably" to fight drug trafficking, the first time since 2005 that it has escaped the designation. Washington has also eased sanctions on Venezuela's hydrocarbons, mining and telecommunications sectors, paving the way for US oil majors to resume or expand operations in the country.