Jan 4 (Reuters) - Delcy Rodriguez, declared the interim

president of Venezuela after Nicolas Maduro's capture by U.S.

forces, is one of the iron fists in Venezuelan politics, a

practitioner of economic orthodoxy who has strived to build

relationships with the private sector and who is known for ‌her

taste for luxury.

Over more than a decade in public life, the 56-year-old

Rodriguez has amassed significant influence, ​earning her the

nickname "the tsarina," while Maduro has called her a "tigress"

for her staunch ‍defense of his socialist government, which has

presided over a ⁠deep economic crisis, ⁠alleged torture and

arbitrary detentions and the exodus of some 8 million migrants.

She has been vice president ‌since 2018, simultaneously

serving first as finance minister ​and then as oil minister.

Before that she was communications minister, foreign minister

and the head of a pro-government legislature. She works ⁠closely

with her brother, Jorge Rodriguez, who ‍is the ​head of the

National Assembly.

The Rodriguez siblings are the children of leftist guerrilla

fighter Jorge Antonio Rodriguez, who founded the revolutionary

Socialist League Party and ‍was arrested in 1976 for his alleged

involvement in the kidnapping of an American businessman.

He died in police custody due to what his family alleges was

torture and Maduro has praised him as a hero of the Venezuelan

left.

Delcy, a lawyer specializing in labor law, spent nine years

in France and England pursuing ​postgraduate ‍studies.

She participates in table tennis competitions with her

brother, which they often share on social media. In public

appearances, she's often seen wearing luxury ​clothing brands.

As vice president, after years of hyperinflation amid U.S.

sanctions, she implemented orthodox policies including cutting

public spending, limiting credit and a fixed dollar-bolivar

rate, which helped lower triple-digit inflation.

She has managed to keep oil production at an average of

about 1.1 million barrels per day last year, and her role has

put her in close contact with foreign ​oil companies like

Chevron ( CVX ).

Sometimes described by industry leaders as a "workaholic,"

Rodriguez attends many private sector events, something other

public officials neglected to do for years. She is the

Venezuelan official who travels most frequently to ‍China,

Russia, and Turkey, some of Venezuela's allies.