Modi holds first talks with Venezuela’s acting president since US ‘kidnap’ of Maduro

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday held a telephone conversation with Delcy Rodríguez , Venezuela’s acting president, marking the first high-level engagement since what Caracas has described as the US military “kidnap” of President Nicolás Maduro earlier this month.

Rodríguez assumed office as interim president on January 5, days after Nicolás Maduro and his wife were seized by US forces and flown out of the country. Venezuela has strongly condemned the operation as an illegal extraterritorial action and a violation of its sovereignty.

According to Venezuelan authorities, the military exercise carried out during the operation led to at least 100 deaths on the Venezuelan side , including security personnel and civilians, triggering nationwide protests and a period of mourning.

In a post on X, Modi said the two leaders agreed to deepen and expand bilateral cooperation , with a shared vision of taking India–Venezuela relations to new heights in the coming years.

A statement from the Prime Minister’s Office said discussions covered trade and investment, energy, digital technology, health, agriculture and people-to-people ties . The leaders also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest and underlined the importance of closer coordination for the Global South .

Both Maduro and Rodríguez are known devotees of Sri Sathya Sai Baba and were regular visitors to the Puttaparthi ashram in Andhra Pradesh , a spiritual connection that has featured prominently in past goodwill engagements between India and Venezuela.

The conversation comes amid heightened geopolitical tensions in Latin America and continued international debate over the legality and consequences of the US operation.