U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio oversees Venezuela's finances, the distribution of its natural resources, and political appointments, The New York Times (NYT) reported, describing him as the country's de facto "viceroy."

Axar.az informs that recalling that U.S. President Donald Trump had previously joked that Rubio could become Venezuela's next leader, the newspaper said that while Trump was likely joking, Rubio "doesn't need to move to Caracas" because he is already "running Venezuela from Washington."

According to the report, citing dozens of officials and sources close to the governments in Washington and Caracas, Rubio has become the de facto administrator of Venezuela, exercising broad influence over the sovereign state in the six months since U.S. forces arrested Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro during a nighttime raid.

The report says Rubio is deeply involved in Venezuela's affairs on a daily basis and remains in contact with acting President Delcy Rodriguez, exchanging messages with her in Spanish.

NYT also reported that Rubio oversees the enforcement of U.S. sanctions on Venezuela and decides who is allowed to do business in the country and under what conditions.