(Bloomberg) -- The Colombian financier recently released by the US to Venezuela thanked President Joe Biden after returning to Caracas following a blockbuster swap between the two countries.

“It takes a lot of courage, character and vision to be able to move away from failed policies,” Alex Saab, a close ally of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, said on state TV from the country’s National Assembly. “My respects go to President Biden.”

Saab, who also thanked US Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens, arrived in Caracas Wednesday as part of an exchange in which Venezuela freed 10 Americans and handed over to the US an infamous defense contractor nicknamed “Fat Leonard.”

Maduro had long sought freedom for Saab, a businessman considered one of the most powerful men supporting his regime. Saab was accused in 2019 of bribing Venezuelan officials and funneling more than $350 million to overseas accounts as part of a food program intended to serve hungry Venezuelans. 

Saab was extradited from Cape Verde to the US in October 2021 to face money laundering charges. He was originally detained in June 2020 while his plane traveling from Venezuela to Iran made a stop to refuel. 

  • Saab will join the Norway-mediated talks between the government and opposition, National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez said alongside Saab via state TV
    • Saab’s wife Camilla Fabri will keep her seat in the roundtable
    • Venezuela’s direct talks with the US began in May, Rodríguez said
  • A Qatar-brokered deal between the countries continues in the works after the prisoner swap: Rodriguez
  • NOTE: Secret Talks, Oil Sanctions: Inside a US-Venezuela Breakthrough

 

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