Machado challenges Venezuela's 'illegitimate' interim govt over massive US oil deal

A tense new fault line in Venezuela's post-Maduro era. Opposition leader and Nobel laureate María Corina Machado has questioned the interim government's massive oil deal with the US — which grants Washington access to over 65 billion barrels, nearly 20% of Venezuela's reserves. While calling the US Venezuela's "principal partner," Machado said the current Caracas leadership lacks the "democratic mandate" to negotiate the country's resources, demanding elections instead.