Round Three of Venezuela Talks Is Under Way in Caracas. The Only Scoreboard That Matters Is an Election Date
The U.S. Embassy says the talks have freed more than 1,000 political prisoners since January and started rebuilding Venezuela's courts. In our view, that progress is real, and this round should end with the one result still missing: a date for free and fair elections.
By Clara Hughes
ALTAS WORLD NEWS OPINION | By Clara Hughes, Chief Opinion Editor | October 15, 2026 | 6-min read The third round of talks between Venezuela's interim government and the opposition opened in Caracas on Wednesday [1], and Washington has real results to point to. The U.S. Embassy in Caracas says the dialogue has produced "concrete advances towards a democratic transition," including the release of more than 1,000 people it describes as political prisoners since Jan. 3, 177 of them since the talks began [2]. Secretary of State Marco Rubio put it plainly last week: "They have already achieved concrete results; more results will be necessary" [3]. In our view, he is right on both counts. And the result that matters most has not been delivered yet: a date for free and fair elections. Key Takeaways The embassy credits the talks with prisoner releases, a law to appoint 32 Supreme Court justices before December, and the unblocking of more than 70 websites [2]. Independent groups paint a more mixed picture: Foro Penal counted 322 political prisoners still held as of Oct. 5, and Espacio Público found 40 monitored websites still blocked [2]. The third round is expected to cover Supreme Court selection, guarantees for