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Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, has expressed a willingness to collaborate with the US government, marking a shift from the defiant posture she first adopted after the apprehension of former dictator Nicolás Maduro.

A Statement of Collaboration

In a statement issued Sunday night, Rodríguez stated she had "invited the US government to work together on an agenda of cooperation."

Her comments came just hours after ex-President Donald Trump warned that Maduro's former vice-president could "face severe consequences, potentially bigger than Maduro" if she failed to comply with his wishes.

Leadership Shift in Venezuela

Rodríguez has effectively been running Venezuela since Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were captured on Saturday. The couple were taken to New York and are due to appear at a federal court in Manhattan.

She was formally inaugurated as president by the supreme court on Saturday. The following day, the country's armed forces pledged to acknowledge her authority, while simultaneously calling for the immediate release of Maduro and his wife.

The Former President's Statements and Strategy

Following the shocking capture of Maduro, Trump stated that the United States would now "manage" Venezuela "until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition." He also mentioned that contact had been established with Rodríguez.

On Sunday, he warned that the US might launch a further action if holdouts of the administration do not cooperate with his plans to get the country "fixed."

Trump's actions have effectively marginalized the nation's political opposition, lead by Nobel laureate María Corina Machado. This tactic has been widely criticised by analysts who argue that the existing power framework remains mostly unchanged – just without Maduro at its helm.

The Leader's Evolving Posture

In her first public appearance after Maduro's capture, Rodríguez first adopted a stance of resistance, proclaiming that Venezuela would "never again be anyone's colony."

However, on Sunday night, after presiding over a government meeting, she adopted a significantly more conciliatory tone. Rodríguez issued a communication stating she considered a "stable and mutual relationship" with the United States to be a key objective.

"We invite the United States government to work jointly on an cooperative agenda, aimed at mutual progress, within the confines of international law, and that promotes enduring peace," she added.

An Open Appeal to Trump

Addressing the American ex-president directly, she said: "Mr. Trump: our peoples and our region are entitled to dialogue and peace, not war. That has always been President Nicolás Maduro’s belief and it is that of the entire nation at this moment."

"This nation I believe in and to which I have devoted myself. My dream is for Venezuela to become a great power where all patriotic Venezuelans can unite. Venezuela has the right to peace, development, sovereignty and a future," she added.

Contradictory Messages

Despite the conciliatory tone, the administration – and Rodríguez herself, via her official channel – later paid tribute to 32 "Cuban combatants" who were part of Maduro’s personal security and who died "as a consequence of the unlawful and reprehensible attack carried out by the United States."

Previously that day, the defence minister, Gen Vladímir Padrino López, had stated that US troops had "summarily executed much of [Maduro’s] security detail, military personnel and non-combatants," without providing names or a death toll.