CARACAS – Bradley Hansell, the U.S. Under Secretary of War for Intelligence and Security, traveled to Venezuela as part of a regional mission that also included Colombia, Ecuador and Panama, according to the Pentagon.
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell confirmed that Hansell held high-level meetings in Caracas, marking another notable contact between U.S. officials and Venezuelan authorities amid changing relations between Washington and Caracas.
According to Parnell, the regional tour was aimed at strengthening security cooperation, combating narcoterrorism across the Western Hemisphere and protecting the Panama Canal.
The Pentagon did not identify the Venezuelan officials who met with Hansell in Caracas and provided no details about any agreements or commitments resulting from the discussions.
It is therefore unclear whether the Caracas meetings focused specifically on counternarcotics operations, intelligence cooperation, regional security or other issues involving the United States and Venezuela.
Hansell's visit is significant because of his senior position overseeing intelligence and security matters within the U.S. defense establishment. A high-level visit of this nature adds a security dimension to the broader diplomatic contacts now taking place between Washington and Caracas.
The inclusion of Venezuela in a tour involving Colombia, Ecuador and Panama also places the visit within a broader U.S. security strategy for Latin America and the Caribbean.
The Pentagon's emphasis on narcoterrorism is particularly relevant to the Caribbean, where international trafficking routes continue to be a major security concern. Venezuela's extensive Caribbean coastline and its proximity to Curaçao, Aruba and Bonaire also make developments involving regional security cooperation important for the Dutch Caribbean.
However, the Pentagon has not indicated whether security surrounding the Caribbean islands or cooperation with other countries in the region formed part of Hansell's discussions in Caracas.
For now, Washington has confirmed the high-level meetings but left unanswered the most important question: what, if anything, was agreed between the two sides.