Trump orders to cancel US oil deal with Venezuela
Photo: Donald Trump, President of the United States (Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump has decided to cancel the oil deal between the US and Venezuela. It was signed during the tenure of his predecessor, Joe Biden, as reported by Bloomberg.
“We are hereby reversing the concessions that Crooked Joe Biden gave to Nicolás Maduro, of Venezuela, on the oil transaction agreement,” Trump wrote in a social media post.
In a post, the US president referred to a concession agreement from November 26, 2022, starting from March 1, when there was an opportunity to extend it.
Trump stated that Venezuela had not met the terms of the oil extraction agreement with the US, which is why it would be annulled.
He also noted that the decision to terminate the agreement was not solely due to breaches of the oil deal. According to Trump, Caracas was failing to fulfill its obligations regarding the return of migrants it had sent to the US.
Oil deal
Bloomberg notes that under this oil agreement, the American company Chevron Corp. was granted permission to extract and sell oil in Venezuela despite sanctions against President Nicolás Maduro's government. According to the license terms, Chevron was required to leave Venezuela by the end of July.
Trump's move signals a tightening of US restrictions on the South American country following contested elections that extended Maduro's rule and widespread repression against his political opponents. The loss of Chevron would be a major setback for Venezuela's economic recovery, as the American company had helped boost oil production to over one million barrels per day, the publication reports.
About a month ago, Axios, citing sources, reported that the administration of US President Donald Trump was seeking a regime change in Venezuela, specifically for Nicolás Maduro to step down. However, it remains unclear how this could be achieved.
