There is no immediate word on the whereabouts of the released detainees, though they are expected to be flown out of Venezuela to the United States without delay.
Venezuela released at least two jailed US citizens on Tuesday, March 8, people familiar with the matter said, in an apparent goodwill gesture toward the Biden administration following a visit to Caracas by a high-level US delegation.
Washington has sought the release of at least nine men, including those known as the “Citgo 6,” two former Green Berets and a former US Marine. Tuesday’s release followed talks with socialist President Nicolas Maduro on Saturday as the Biden administration sought ways to stave off the impact of soaring US gas prices spurred by efforts by the West to punish Russia for its war in Ukraine.
But the Biden administration faced strong criticism on Capitol Hill for its outreach to Maduro, who is under US sanctions for human rights abuses and political repression. The United States in 2019 recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as the country’s legitimate president following Maduro’s 2018 re-election, which Western governments dismissed as a sham.Cardenas was one of six executives of US-based Citgo Petroleum, owned by Venezuela’s state-own oil company PDVSA, arrested during a business trip to Caracas in 2017.