Delcy Rodr\u00edguez was sworn in today as interim president of Venezuela, two days after the United States arrested Venezuelan President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores in Caracas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI will give no rest to my hand nor peace to my soul until I see Venezuela fulfill its just destiny, as a free, sovereign, and independent nation. I swear by the people of Venezuela that I will not rest until I guarantee peace and tranquility for the republic,\u201d Rodr\u00edguez said during the oath-taking ceremony, reports the Bitlyanews portal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rodr\u00edguez is the first woman to assume the office of president of Venezuela.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After taking the oath, as interim president of Venezuela, she stated that she attended the ceremony \u201cwith sorrow over the suffering inflicted on the people\u201d of that country following what she described as the United States\u2019 \u201cillegitimate military aggression.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Saturday, January 3, around two hours after midnight local time, U.S. forces arrested Nicol\u00e1s Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores in a military operation in Caracas. They were transferred to the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York, where they will be held during trial on charges of drug and arms trafficking, which began today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Delcy Rodr\u00edguez was born on May 18, 1969, in Caracas, into a family deeply rooted in left-wing activism. Her political biography is strongly marked by her family legacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She is the daughter of Jorge Antonio Rodr\u00edguez, a Marxist guerrilla and founder of the Socialist League, who was arrested and died in 1976 during police interrogation. His death strongly influenced a generation of Venezuelan leftists, including Maduro himself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Her brother, Jorge Rodr\u00edguez, is today the president of the National Assembly and one of the key political strategists of the ruling structure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By education a lawyer, she graduated from the Central University of Venezuela, and part of her studies was completed in France, where she specialized in labor law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After Maduro took power in 2013, Rodr\u00edguez quickly advanced through the state hierarchy\u2014she served as minister of information, then minister of foreign affairs, becoming the first woman to hold that position in Venezuela\u2019s history, and in 2018 she was appointed vice president of the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In recent years, Delcy Rodr\u00edguez has played a key role in managing the economy, simultaneously holding the positions of vice president, minister of finance, and minister of oil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During that period, she implemented market-oriented reforms, privatization of part of state assets, and a relatively conservative fiscal policy in an attempt to curb hyperinflation and stabilize the economy after years of collapse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Because of this approach, she built contacts with domestic business leaders, foreign investors, and certain circles within the U.S. oil industry, which set her apart as a potential interlocutor for the West.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite her more moderate image, Delcy Rodr\u00edguez is under sanctions by the United States, Canada, and the European Union for her role in suppressing protests and cracking down on the political opposition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Maduro himself once described her as a \u201ctigress\u201d because of her uncompromising loyalty to the Bolivarian project and defense of socialist rule.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The assumption of presidential powers by Delcy Rodr\u00edguez opens numerous questions about Venezuela\u2019s future political course\u2014from the possibility of negotiations with the international community to internal stability and future elections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although formally an interim president, Rodr\u00edguez has found herself at the center of one of the most dramatic moments in the country\u2019s recent history, and her next moves could have long-term consequences for Venezuela and the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
WHO IS CILIA FLORES, MADURO\u2019S WIFE? She defended Hugo Ch\u00e1vez as a lawyer, was the first female speaker of parliament, they call her the \u201ccombat force of socialism\u201d (VIDEO)<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n