The prize was tempting: a chance to stem the wave of refugees heading for the US border in an election year, improve the supply of non-Russian oil and gas to world markets and return a major Latin American nation to democracy.

But the unravelling of the Biden administration’s agreement with the Venezuelan government has left the US facing the worst of both worlds: the failure so far of its negotiating strategy and a likely return to a sanctions policy that has failed before.

Keen to move away from a Trump-era policy of “maximum pressure” financial penalties designed to unseat authoritarian President Nicolás Maduro, the Biden administration negotiated with the regime for more than a year at secret talks. They reached an understanding that crippling US sanctions on oil and gas — the lifeblood of Venezuela’s economy — would be lifted in return for steps towards free and fair presidential elections later this year and the release of wrongfully detained US citizens.