The US president announced a “total blockade” of sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela and stated that the country is surrounded by a large naval force. In his message, Trump assured that Venezuela “stole” oil, land and other assets from the United States, without specifying what events or periods he is referring to.
The President of the United States, Donald Trump, ordered a “total and complete” blockade of sanctioned oil ships entering and leaving Venezuela, according to a message published on his social network Truth Social. The announcement was accompanied by threats of greater US military deployment in the Caribbean and harsh accusations against the administration of Nicolás Maduro.
«Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Navy ever assembled in the history of South America. This will only grow, and the shock to them will be like they have never seen before,” Trump wrote. He assured that the pressure will remain “until they return to the United States all the oil, land and other assets that were previously stolen from us.”
In his publication, the president stated that Nicolás Maduro’s administration uses Venezuelan oil to finance “narcoterrorism, human trafficking, murder and kidnapping,” and maintained that, for these and other reasons, it has been designated as a “foreign terrorist organization.” “Therefore, today I order a total and complete blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela,” he said.
Trump also linked the measure to his immigration policy and assured that “the illegal and criminal immigrants that the Maduro regime has sent to the United States during the weak and inept Biden administration are being returned to Venezuela at an accelerated pace.” In closing the message, he stated that the United States “will not allow criminals, terrorists or other countries to steal, threaten or harm our nation, nor will it allow a hostile regime to seize our oil, land or any other assets, all of which must be returned to the United States IMMEDIATELY.”
One of the most striking elements of the announcement is the accusation that Venezuela had “stolen” oil, land and other assets from the United States. In the message released by Trump No dates, specific facts or which oil fields or properties it refers to are specified.nor is it specified under what legal or historical framework this statement is based, which leaves open the question about the real scope of the accusation.
The announcement comes a few days after Trump reported that the United States intercepted and confiscated an oil tanker off the Venezuelan coast, in a context of tension sustained since August over the US air-naval deployment in the Caribbean. As reported, the ship Skipper, which was sailing under an alleged false flag of Guyanawas seized by order of a US judge due to previous links to sanctioned Iranian oil smuggling, although at the time it was transporting Venezuelan crude.
The organization Transparency Venezuela has calculated that 40% of the tankers those who arrive in Venezuela are irregular. In November they detected a total of 98 vessels transporting Venezuelan crude, 14 less than those observed in October. Of the 98 tankers, 64 are international, 17 are from PDVSA and 17 arrived with their AIS signals turned off, says an investigation carried out by the NGO.
This Tuesday, the Reuters agency reported that discounts on the prices of Merey crude oil – Venezuela’s benchmark oil – destined for China, have widened to $21 per barrel below the Brent reference price, reflecting the growing cost of a “war clause” requested by ship owners to protect themselves from interceptions, delays or diverted flows due to the continued US military presence in the Caribbean. The note mentions that the changes began to occur after the seizure of a sanctioned vessel.
*Read also: Trump wants to destroy boats until Maduro surrenders, says his chief of staff
*Journalism in Venezuela is carried out in a hostile environment for the press with dozens of legal instruments in place to punish the word, especially the laws “against hate”, “against fascism” and “against the blockade.” This content was written taking into consideration the threats and limits that, consequently, have been imposed on the dissemination of information from within the country.
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