CIA Chief John Ratcliffe spoke with interim President of Venezuela

(Patria) - CIA Chief John Ratcliffe traveled to Venezuela and met with the country's interim president Delcy Rodriguez, a US official said yesterday, agencies reported.

The visit of the high-ranking US official was called a "confidence-building measure" after the shocking ousting of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3.

US President Donald Trump sent the head of intelligence to Caracas on Thursday for a meeting that lasted approximately two hours, US sources said, less than two weeks after Maduro and his wife were captured in a US military operation.

"At the direction of President Trump, Director Ratcliffe traveled to Venezuela to meet with interim President Delcy Rodriguez to convey the message that the US expects an improved working relationship," said a Trump administration official on condition of anonymity.

The official added that Ratcliffe and Rodriguez "discussed potential opportunities for economic cooperation and that Venezuela can no longer be a safe haven for US adversaries, especially drug traffickers".

The visit took place a day after Trump spoke with Rodriguez for the first time and on the same day that Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado presented Trump with the Nobel Peace Prize at the White House.

Trump has so far supported Rodriguez, a former vice president under Maduro, to remain in power as long as Venezuelan oil flows.

Ratcliffe attends Trump's cabinet meetings and is the highest-ranking official to travel to Venezuela since the United States ousted the leftist Maduro.

US sources described the CIA chief's visit as a "confidence-building measure" that paved the way for continued communication between Washington and Caracas.

The visit was coordinated between the White House, the US State Department, and the Pentagon, they added.