The Kremlin is ready not to interfere with the U.S. asserting dominance in Venezuela in exchange for concessions on Ukraine, Reuters reports

The Kremlin is ready not to interfere with the United States’ dominance in Venezuela in exchange for concessions from Washington regarding Ukraine.

Reuters reports.

The agency writes that although the U.S. capture of Venezuela’s president Nicolás Maduro has deprived Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin of an ally and could strengthen U.S. “oil influence,” Moscow is counting on potential benefits from a division of the world into spheres of influence initiated by U.S. President Donald Trump.

According to Reuters, people in Moscow believe that by removing Maduro, the United States has shown that Latin America is its zone of influence. The Kremlin reportedly interpreted this as a signal that backroom “sphere-for-sphere” deals could be possible.

“Russia has lost an ally in Latin America. But if this is an example of Trump’s Monroe Doctrine being applied in practice—as it appears to be—then Russia also has its own sphere of influence,” a high-ranking Russian source said.

The report notes that Putin has not publicly commented on the U.S. operation in Venezuela.