Joesley Batista, one of the controllers of the J&F group, made a private visit to Caracas, capital of Venezuela, last Friday (9). He met with the interim president, Delcy Rodríguez. The Batista family conglomerate maintains business in the country, especially in the areas of food and energy.
Sources interviewed by CNN claim that the conversation between the two discussed the political situation of the provisional government, the support that Delcy receives from the Chavista regime after the arrest of Nicolás Maduro and investment opportunities in the country.
Although he does not hold a diplomatic position nor was he officially sent by the Brazilian government, Joesley would have kept Planalto informed about the negotiations in Caracas.
According to the newspaper, despite Joesley not having any type of diplomatic or political representation from the Brazilian government, the administration of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was notified about the trip.
Furthermore, the report would indicate that the businessman has conveyed positive impressions of the meeting to both American authorities and Brazilian investors and politicians.
Regarding the trip, CNN found that Joesley left aboard a Bombardier Global 6000 (registration PS-BJB), belonging to José Batista Júnior, his brother. The FlightTradar 24 website shows that the flight left Washington on Thursday (8), at 9:58 pm and landed in Caracas at 2:52 am on Friday, local time.
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After the meeting, he returned to the United States the same night, arriving in Washington at around 1:15 am on Saturday (10).
When contacted by the report, J&F said it “will not comment” on the matter. The Brazilian government and Delcy Rodríguez’s office have also not commented so far.
