The White House has ordered US military forces to focus almost exclusively on enforcing a “quarantine on Venezuelan oil” for at least the next two months, a US official told Reuters news agency on Wednesday (24).
According to the official, the objective is to use economic pressure against the Venezuelan regime to achieve the result desired by the White House.
The statement could diminish the immediate prospect of U.S. ground attacks on Venezuela, which President Donald Trump has repeatedly said could occur.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the White House order calls for U.S. forces to focus almost exclusively “on quarantining Venezuelan oil for at least the next two months.”
He said efforts so far have put enormous pressure on Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro and it is estimated that by the end of January Venezuela will face economic calamity unless it agrees to make significant concessions to the United States.
Venezuela, which has the largest oil reserves in the world, has an economy dependent on exports of this commodity. Experts say a U.S. export blockade would stifle Venezuela’s economy, further increasing pressure for Maduro’s departure.
In response to the naval actions of the United States against Venezuelan oil tankers, the regime of dictator Nicolas Maduro approved on Tuesday (23) a law against “piracy in the seas of the world.”
The text specifies that “any person who encourages, incites, requests, invokes, favors, facilitates, supports, finances or participates in piracy, blockade or other international illicit acts will be punished by imprisonment of 15 to 20 years”. It also provides for fines of up to 1 million euros (R$6.5 million). According to Maduro, the measure has “great power”.
The legislation was approved by Venezuela’s regime-controlled National Assembly at a time of tension in the Caribbean following the interception of Venezuela-linked oil tankers by US forces in recent weeks – in acts justified by Washington as the fight against narco-terrorism and sanctions against the Maduro regime. The dictator, in turn, claims that these initiatives constitute theft and piracy.
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