The Biden administration is preparing to ease sanctions on Venezuela to allow Chevron to pump oil in the country under a potential deal with the Venezuelan government, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The Trump administration began imposing crippling economic sanctions on Venezuela in 2017. In 2019, the US recognized opposition figure Juan Guaido as the “interim president” and backed a failed coup attempt against President Nicolas Maduro.
The sanctions on Venezuela have done little to hurt the government but have had a devastating impact on the civilian population and the country’s economy.
Under the potential deal, the US would give Venezuela significant sanctions relief and Maduro’s government would resume talks with the opposition on the 2024 presidential election. Guaido has virtually no support left in Venezuela after his failed coup attempt and repeated calls for foreign intervention, but there are other opposition figures.
The deal could also unlock hundreds of millions in frozen Venezuelan government funds held by US banks that would be used to pay for imports of food, medicine, and equipment needed to repair the country’s power and water infrastructure. The report said that the terms of the deal are expected to be shored up later this month.
Responding to the report, the National Security Council said that there were no plans to change sanctions policy without “constructive steps” from the Maduro government. “Our sanctions policy on Venezuela remains unchanged. We will continue to implement and enforce our Venezuela sanctions,” NSC spokesperson Adrienne Watson said.
The report said that Wall Street firms and investors have been pressing the Biden administration to lift sanctions on Venezuela to open up business opportunities in the country. The country sits atop the world’s largest oil reserves, and getting more Venezuelan crude on the market could significantly ease global prices.
They are orders of magnitude less odious than the Saudis.
How do you measure that? Evil, viscous, vindictive , odious, all that is like being a little pregnant. Face it, Americans are as odious as the Saudis or Hitler.
Hitler got some of his ideas from Jim Crow laws. You might want to adjust who is worse.
They all are just bad people, Hell must be overflowing.
Gettin’ pretty damn hot on Earth.
“viscous’ means sticky. You mean vicious,
Yes, thanks.
Let’s help the stock price of a US corporation.
No thought whatsoever to help suffering Venezuelans.
what a cool guy you are uncle sam
The American governments are the most vile and evil governments in the world. Extortion is the only policy they know, since Reagan they have continuously destroyed working middle class people, small business and jobs.
All in support of the monopolies like the energy giants, the MIC, and WS and not only in the USA, all over the globe the global giants, the USA in the lead, are destroying the middleclass. It is ok to destroy the people in Venezuela and then expect to get their oil. Enough to make one puke. The Biden people are viscous criminals. Biden has no shame, he is evil.
What have the Venezuelan people and all the other sanctioned nations, done to justify the sanctions? Start with Venezuela why does the USA sanction the nation and freezing Venezuelan national funds? What about human rights?
It is evil, as American as apple pie.
The US government is like the boss of organized crime. They shake down different countries for protection, take over territories, start wars for profit and order hits.
Nicely stated! Nicely stated…
This would be about as lasting as the fist-bump with Bonesaw.
The US might find in briefly convenient, but regime change is the unwavering policy of both parties whenever in office. The US is attacking Venezuela, and will continue to do so until it is conquered and placed back under control of ex-pat oligarchs serving the US.
The Venezuelans are suffering because they live in a left wing dictatorship that ruined their economy-destroyed their oil industry.
Ziocon boilerplate suggestive of a bot.
The Venezuelans are suffering because the Neocons (who rule the US on behalf of Israel) can’t abide a truly democratic and independent nation whose leadership endeavors to serve the Venezuelan people rather than allow the Neocon Empire-of-Lies to loot its oil wealth.
Reality! What a concept!
They suffered under right wing dictators until Chavez freed the people. They now have a democratically elected government first Chavez and now Maduro, all elections have been free and orderly elections, at least as good as our own elections. The USA has corrupt government, big money rules, shrinking the working middle class which is being impoverished. The democracy in the USA is rigged against the people.
Venezuela should bring in the negotiators, let them make their pitch, and then tell them NO DEAL and immediately usher them to a car waiting to take them back to the airport.