Machado fails to slip back into Venezuela while Rodríguez is away

Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado speaks during a rally in Panama City on May 23. | AFP-JIJI

BLOOMBERG

Sep 23, 2026

Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado tried three times in the past 24 hours to return home but was unable to complete the journey.

Machado sought to travel from Panama to Venezuela by different routes, according to a person with direct knowledge of her plans. The attempts came as acting President Delcy Rodríguez visited New York for the United Nations General Assembly, where she met with U.S. President Donald Trump.

The efforts included plans to travel by boat and to fly to the Caribbean islands of Aruba and Curacao before continuing by sea, the person said. Colombia’s NTN24 first reported the attempts earlier Tuesday.

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