The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi shake hands with the acting President of Venezuela, Delcy Eloína Rodríguez Gómez, during her visits to Indiax, at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Thursday, June 4, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday (June 4, 2026) held talks with Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez focusing on boosting bilateral ties in areas of energy, trade and investment.The two sides are looking at expanding energy cooperation, as New Delhi seeks to diversify its crude oil procurement amid supply disruptions from the West Asia crisis.The Venezuelan Vice President landed here on Wednesday (June 3, 2026) .External Affairs Ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said the visit will further deepen India-Venezuela ties.Ms. Rodriguez took charge as Venezuela's acting President following the detention of then President Nicolas Maduro by U.S. forces in January.India was once a major processor of Venezuelan heavy crude, importing more than 4,00,000 barrels per day at peak levels, until sweeping U.S. sanctions and rising compliance risks forcibly shut down purchases in 2020.New Delhi started purchasing crude oil from Venezuela after the sanctions were lifted following Mr. Maduro's capture. Indian oil marketing companies significantly ramped up crude oil sourcing from Venezuela in the last few weeks largely due to the West Asia crisis.The Venezuelan acting President is accompanied by several Ministers, including the Ministers of foreign affairs, economy and finance, science and technology, communication and information, and transportation. Published - June 04, 2026 04:49 pm IST
