By Luc Cohen
MIAMI, March 24 (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio testified on Tuesday that his longtime friend and former U.S. Congressman David Rivera did not tell him that he had a $50-million contract with a company owned by the Venezuelan state when he took a meeting about Venezuela with Rivera in 2017.
Rivera, 60, is standing trial on federal criminal charges of acting as an unregistered agent of ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s government to try to ease U.S. pressure on the country. Rivera has pleaded not guilty and his lawyers say he was working to help the opposition get rid of Maduro.
Rubio’s testimony has briefly taken him out of Washington, where he has been engaged in high-level diplomacy around U.S. President Donald Trump’s war in Iran, and into the federal courthouse in downtown Miami, his hometown and where his political career began.
Rubio told jurors that Rivera, in a meeting in July 2017, had told him that he was in touch with insiders in Venezuela who had convinced Maduro to step aside.
Rubio said he was skeptical that the gambit would work, but that he briefly told Trump the next day that “there might be something happening in Venezuela,” and that he would keep him posted.
Under questioning by prosecutor Harold Shimkat, Rubio said he was not aware that Rivera’s company had been paid by U.S. oil refiner Citgo Petroleum, a subsidiary of Venezuela’s state oil company.
Had he known, Rubio said, “I would have not taken any subsequent action in this matter.”
RIVERA SAYS HE TRIED TO HELP VENEZUELAN OPPOSITION
Rivera’s defense lawyers are expected to cross-examine Rubio later. Rivera represented South Florida in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2011 to 2013.
Rubio testified that he and Rivera – both Cuban-American Republicans and outspoken opponents of left-wing governments in Cuba and Venezuela – were close friends and roommates earlier in their political careers.
In his opening statement on Monday, defense lawyer Edward Shohat said Rivera’s interactions with Rubio were separate from his contract with Citgo. He said Rivera’s work for Citgo related to business, not politics, and so he did not have to register as a foreign agent.
“David Rivera had no reason to tell Rubio about that contract,” Shohat said.
Despite the alleged lobbying effort, Trump ramped up financial sanctions on Venezuela during his first term.
MADURO CAPTURED IN JANUARY
U.S. special forces captured Maduro in a January 3 raid on Caracas and brought him to New York to face drug trafficking charges. He has pleaded not guilty.
Since Maduro’s ouster, Venezuela has been led on an interim basis by Delcy Rodriguez, and relations with Washington have improved.
Jurors saw a Senate speech Rubio gave in 2017 in which he said there was still a chance for a transition in Venezuela without vengeance. Rubio said Rivera had told him that Maduro government insiders feared retribution by the opposition if they left power.
“Ironically, these words are very much aligned with what we’re trying to achieve now in Venezuela,” Rubio said.
(Reporting by Luc Cohen in MiamiEditing by Rod Nickel and Nick Zieminski)
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