U.S. diplomatic personnel have been deployed to Caracas as the Trump administration moves to resume relations with Venezuela after Nicolás Maduro's capture.

Venezuelan lawmakers on Thursday backed a plan that would make it easier for foreign companies to participate in the country’s oil industry, in the latest move by Caracas to meet the demands of US President Donald Trump.

U.S. Southern Command said the Liberian-flagged Motor Vessel Sagitta was apprehended “without incident” and was taking oil from Venezuela in defiance of sanctions.

Mr Putin praised Russia’s constructive role in Latin America and the Middle East. He made no mention of America’s armed forces having abducted Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela’s president, a Russian ally whom he had welcomed in the Kremlin eight months earlier—much less of how easily they had knocked out Venezuela’s Russian-built air defences.

Oilfield service company SLB can rapidly increase its activities in Venezuela, provided the appropriate licensing, safety parameters and compliance measures are in place, it said on Friday.

U.S. military forces boarded and took control of a seventh oil tanker connected with Venezuela on Tuesday as the Trump administration continues its efforts to take control of the oil in the South American country.

It lines up another potential showdown between the two superpowers that could further complicate the South American country's path out of default.

Several surveys show that a majority of Latin Americans who were questioned endorsed the intervention, suggesting a shift, at least for now, from ideology to pragmatism.