Guillermo Zubillaga on Sky News about the U.S. Capture of Nicolás Maduro

Guillermo Zubillaga, senior director of Public Policy Programs and Corporate Relations at AS/COA and head of the organization's Venezuela Working Group, spoke with Sky News' Jayne Secker about the U.S. government capturing Venezuela's leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores as well as the aftermath of that operation.

Secker asked Zubillaga about "the disconnect" between what President Donald Trump said about his administration’s efforts to coordinate with newly inaugurated President Delcy Rodríguez compared with the former president’s comments made publicly to the people of Venezuela in which she rejected U.S. moves.

"I think that is precisely the question. All of us who follow Venezuela closely are watching what the next steps are after this operation," responded Zubillaga. "Venezuela is a big country, big territory, so you need an authority on the ground in order to execute these plans. And it seemed, earlier today, that that person was going to be the vice president, who was just sworn in as president after the extraction, but now it seems that it may not go as smoothly."

"We're watching closely to see who [that] will be because there seems to be no evidence of any troops on the ground from the United States. The need for a local partner is very much needed in order to be able to execute these plans that Trump and his team announced earlier," added Zubillaga.

Secker also asked the AS/COA expert what would ideally unfold in Venezuela in the coming days and weeks.

"Well, I think this is a country that needs a lot of resources. That means investment. It's a country in a dire humanitarian situation. So it would be important to get some clarity, perhaps for the multilateral organizations to be able to come in, perhaps for the possible investors who are ready to invest in projects, to understand who are the authorities and the legitimacy of those contracts. So I'm hoping to get—and I'm sure I am not alone—a sense of the rules of the game in this transitional period, and understand who are the authorities and what kind of contracts and laws will govern as well in this transition."

Watch the full interview.