U.S. diplomat meets with Maduro to bolster Venezuela dialogue
CARACAS - A senior US diplomat on Monday met with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro as part of an effort to support dialogue between the government and the opposition amid an escalating political standoff and a worsening economic crisis.
The arrival of Tom Shannon, US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs and an expert on Latin America, may help spur negotiations between the two sides, which over the years have repeatedly held talks that generated few concrete results.
Venezuelan state television briefly showed images of Shannon shaking hands with Maduro and speaking informally with other ruling Socialist Party officials in the Miraflores presidential palace.
