It was a rare day of celebration for the Venezuelan opposition, which had been deprived of concrete victories since launching their coup with US backing in January. Having just been installed with as Venezuela’s “ambassador” at the OAS, Tarre controlled little more than the chair he sat in. But as he was trotted out into the hall by a young handler in order to hold his first press-conference as “ambassador,” he beamed with pride.

As soon as I approached Tarre and another key figure in Juan Guaido’s coup administration with critical questions about their legitimacy – and about their apparent participation in a closed door meeting to discuss a US military assault on Venezuela – their ebullience turned to rage.

In an exclusive report on April 13, The Grayzone exposed a private roundtable that gathered a who’s who of Trump advisors, right-wing Latin American officials, and Venezuelan opposition figures to discuss “Assessing the Use of Military Force in Venezuela.” The meeting was hosted on April 10 at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington-based think tank where Tarre had been employed as a fellow. And the newly installed ambassador’s name appeared on the meeting check-in list.

.@AnyaParampil asked questions the new OAS rep for Venezuela's US-backed coup regime, @TarreBriceno, is not used to hearing.

He took off his glasses and tried to give them to her, claiming "You did not see anyone in the streets [of Venezuela]!" (where he has not been in 5 years) pic.twitter.com/Hh8ZzPgc57

— The Grayzone (@GrayzoneProject) April 24, 2019

When I asked Tarre if he had participated in the roundtable, and if he thought it was normal for an ambassador to discuss a foreign invasion of his own country, he pivoted to a familiar opposition talking point: “[Venezuela] is a country invaded by foreigners. Invaded by Russian agents. Invaded by Cubans.”