Trump says he’s instructed US officials to reopen Venezuelan airspace for commercial travel

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Trump says he’s instructed US officials to reopen Venezuelan airspace for commercial travel

President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

2026-01-29T16:53:05Z

                                       

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says he has informed Venezuelan leader Delcy Rodríguez that he’s going to be opening up all commercial airspace over Venezuela and Americans will soon be able to visit.

Trump said Thursday he instructed U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and U.S. military leaders to open up the airspace by the end of the day.

The Republican president says, “American citizens will be very shortly able to go to Venezuela, and they’ll be safe there.”

Earlier this week, Trump’s Republican administration notified Congress that it was taking the first steps to possibly reopen the shuttered U.S. Embassy in Venezuela as it explores restoring relations with the South American country following         data-gtm-enhancement-style="LinkEnhancementA" href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-maduro-venezuela-presidential-palace-blowtorches-7969152ae48510003fe9cbde92f3c102">the U.S. military raid that ousted then-President         data-gtm-enhancement-style="LinkEnhancementA" href="https://apnews.com/article/venezuela-maduro-capture-trump-attack-military-ceb21da088f0a06b1813e66922def9a3">Nicolás Maduro.

In a notice to lawmakers dated Monday and obtained by The Associated Press on Tuesday, the State Department said it was sending in a regular and growing contingent of temporary staffers to conduct “select” diplomatic functions.

   
       
   

“We are writing to notify the committee of the Department of State’s intent to implement a phased approach to potentially resume Embassy Caracas operations,” the department said in separate but identical letters to 10 House and Senate committees.

   
       




   

Diplomatic relations between the two countries collapsed in 2019, and the U.S. State Department warned Americans shouldn’t travel to Venezuela, raising its travel advisory to the highest level.

The State Department on Thursday still listed a travel advisory for Venezuela at its highest level, “Do not travel,” warning that Americans face a high risk of wrongful detention, torture, kidnapping and more.

                                   
                               
                           

                           
                   
                   
                   

                   
                   
   
       
           
               
   
       
           
               
                   
     
   

   
   
       

   

   
       

   
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                MICHELLE L. PRICE
           
       

       
           
                Price covers the White House. She previously covered the 2024 presidential campaign and politics, government and other news in New York, Nevada, Utah and Arizona. She is based in Washington.
           
       
       
       
           
               
                   
                       
   
   
       
           
       
   
   
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Source: Trump says he’s instructed US officials to reopen Venezuelan airspace for commercial travel