The president of VenezuelaNicolás Maduro assured this Monday that the contracts with the American oil company Chevron will be fulfilled “rain, shine or lightning.”
The advertisement, cited by cnn and EFEoccurs a day after his Government announced the departure of a company ship loaded with oil in a context of growing tensions with Washington.
“We are serious people, when we sign a contract, according to the Constitution and the law, that is fulfilled, rain, shine or lightning, as is happening with Chevron. Rain, shine and lightning!” said Maduro during a government event with producers in Caracas that was broadcast by the state channel Venezolana de Televisión (VTV).
“Circumstantial”, “momentary” conflicts…
“Beyond the circumstantial, momentary conflicts that we may have with the entire administration, with Chevron the contract is strictly fulfilled. We are serious people, because we are dignified people,” the president continued.
Although the Government of Donald Trump has maintained a military deployment in international waters of the Caribbean since August, considered by the Maduro Government as a pressure strategy against it, Chevron continues to operate in Venezuelan territory with a special license.
The US president had said last week that Venezuela took oil from the United States and that the United States wants it back, after announcing a blockade against sanctioned oil tankers leaving and entering the South American country.
Intercepted oil tankers
On Sunday, Washington carried out an operation to intercept an oil tanker in the Caribbean Sea, near the coast of Venezuela, according to US media, a day after the seizure of a Panamanian-flagged vessel that, according to Washington, was trafficking “sanctioned crude oil” within the Venezuelan “ghost fleet”, the Spanish agency points out.
It was the second oil tanker that Washington intercepted this weekend under Trump’s orders, and the third after the United States intensified efforts to cut off the flow of crude oil from Venezuela as part of the military deployment it has maintained since last August in the Caribbean.
Trump redoubles threats against Venezuela and keeps oil and ships expropriated in the Caribbean
Venezuela also warned that the blockade against sanctioned oil tankers will hit the world economy and increase “the instability of international markets.”
Chevron maintains authorization from Washington to transport some 200,000 barrels per day to the United States.
