Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—On Thursday, September 24, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Félix Plasencia took advantage of the UN General Assembly in New York to pursue the restoration of consular services, trade, and energy cooperation.He met with representatives from Peru, Guatemala, Angola, Italy, Jamaica, and Portugal, as Venezuela sought to rebuild diplomatic channels strained during years of the US blockade and Washington’s recognition of Juan Guaidó’s purported “interim presidency.”Peru offered one of the clearest results of the effort. In July, Caracas and Lima agreed to restore consular services as the first step toward fully resuming relations, which were broken in 2024. In Thursday’s meeting, Peru said it had appointed a consul general in Caracas and expected Venezuela to name a representative in Lima. Restored offices would give nationals of both countries direct access to documents and consular assistance. Lima also said, in a clear interventionist tone, it wanted Venezuela’s reforms to lead to a peaceful transition and elections it considers free and fair. Plasencia emphasized mutual respect and the next steps in restoring the relationship. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Félix Plasencia González (@plasenciafelixr)Consular access has particular importance for Venezuelans in Peru, many of whom have faced hostility and discrimination amid the country’s large influx of migration.Plasencia and Guatemalan Foreign Minister Carlos Ramiro Martínez also discussed plans for restoring consular relations. Venezuela presented the proposal as part of its effort to reopen regional channels based on sovereignty and respect between states. No date for reopening the offices was announced.In the meeting with Angola’s Tété António, the agenda was more economic: trade, investment, mining and offshore oil exploration. Caracas and Luanda also discussed exchanging technical knowledge.Italy’s account of its meeting with the Venezuelan foreign minister added a demand absent from the Venezuelan summary. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said he handed Plasencia a list of detained Italian citizens, whom he called political prisoners, and requested their release and full consular access. He also welcomed Rodríguez’s remarks about future elections and discussed the role of Italian energy company Eni in Venezuela. Meanwhile, Plasencia thanked Italy for sending doctors, rescuers, and humanitarian aid after the June 24 earthquakes.Plasencia also met Jamaican Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith at Venezuela’s UN mission. The Venezuelan summary did not refer to a new agreement but recalled that Caracas sent 20.5 tons of aid to Jamaica after Hurricane Melissa in 2025. In talks with Portugal’s Paulo Rangel, Plasencia discussed the ties between the two countries, including the Portuguese-Venezuelan community, but announced no specific new measures.A separate meeting yielded a defined next step. Plasencia and UN Trade and Development’s interim chief, Pedro Manuel Moreno, agreed to organize a working session in Caracas on trade facilitation, export diversification, investment, and the digital economy. Venezuelan institutions and UNCTAD specialists are to review existing projects and identify areas for technical assistance.While the foreign minister is holding meetings in New York, Acting President Delcy Rodríguez has returned to Venezuela. Her first reported activity upon returning was an inspection at the national electricity dispatch center. Rodríguez said demand had exceeded 16,400 megawatts, a level she said has not been reached since 2017, and is linked to the surge in high temperatures. She urged households to use energy rationally.Venezuela’s Rodríguez and Chile’s Kast Discuss Ties; Kast’s Plan for Venezuelan Migrants Tests New DialogueThat appeal came amid renewed protests over prolonged outages in Zulia, Aragua, Lara, Anzoátegui, Portuguesa, and Guárico. Residents reported hours without electricity and demanded a reliable supply. Rodríguez linked the immediate demand surge to the heat. Meanwhile, the head of the state utility company Corpoelec acknowledged that meeting demand would take time, citing long waits for replacement equipment. Venezuela’s recovery from years of US economic blockade will also be judged by whether people in the country’s interior can rely on electricity at home. Orinoco Tribune Special by staffOT/JRE/SF