A US shipment of medicine to Venezuela signals a new era of cooperation

MAIQUETIA, Venezuela — A shipment from the United States of medicine and medical supplies arrived in Venezuela on Friday, reflecting a new spirit of cooperation between the two countries following the stunning capture last month of then-President Nicolás Maduro.

Laura Dogu, the U.S. top diplomat in the South American country, and Venezuelan diplomat Félix Plasencia, received the shipment containing 6 metric tons of supply at the airport outside Venezuela's capital, Caracas.

“It’s very important to stabilize the health system here in Venezuela,” Dogu told reporters at the airport in Maiquetía. She added that the shipment was “the first of many donations” that will arrive “in the coming days.”

Venezuela's complex crisis, which began more than a decade ago, led to the collapse of the country's public health care system. Hospitals are so poorly equipped that patients are asked to provide supplies needed for their care, from syringes to surgical screws.

Plasencia described the donation as a "message of cooperation among two sovereign countries.

"We’re doing the best for our people," he said.