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U.S. ready to target other countries for supporting Venezuela's Maduro

By Mitra Taj

 

FILE PHOTO: U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton walks to give an interview to Fox News outside of the White House in Washington, U.S. July 31, 2019. REUTERS/Leah Millis

 

LIMA (Reuters) - U.S. national security adviser John Bolton on Tuesday said Washington was ready to impose sanctions on any international company doing business with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, a sharp escalation of U.S. pressure on the leftist leader.

 

Bolton, addressing a summit on Venezuela in the Peruvian capital Lima, emphasized that tougher international action was needed to speed up a transition of power in the country, where more than four million Venezuelans have fled economic collapse.

 

"We are sending a signal to third parties that want to do business with the Maduro regime: proceed with extreme caution," Bolton said.

 

His speech came a day after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order that freezes the assets of the Venezuelan government and bans any transactions with it, an act that could ensnare its dealings with Russia and China as well as with Western companies.

 

Bolton, one of the Trump administration's most influential hawks on Venezuela, told reporters the move forces companies around the world to choose whether to risk access to the United States and its financial system for business with Maduro.

 

During a news conference in Peru, President Trump's national security adviser John Bolton on Tuesday called for tougher international action against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro after Washington froze his government's assets in a sharp escalation of its pressure on the leftist leader. Rough Cut (no reporter narration).

U.S. national security adviser John Bolton said on Tuesday that tough new U.S. sanctions against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro would choke off his international financing and warned Russia not to provide Venezuela with further support.

Addressing a summit on Venezuela in the Peruvian capital Lima, Bolton stressed that U.S. authorities can now target and sanction anyone, including foreigners, who supports Maduro's government.

"We are sending a signal to third parties that want to do business with the Maduro regime: proceed with extreme caution," Bolton said, .

Bolton called for tougher international action against Maduro, whom he accused of only pretending to engage in negotiations with the opposition to buy himself time.

"The time for dialog is over. Now is the time for action," Bolton said. "Maduro is at the end of his rope," Bolton said, warning Russia not to provide him with further support.

U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday that freezes the assets of the Venezuelan government and bans any transactions with it, an act that could ensnare its dealings with Russia and China as well as with Western companies.

It was the first U.S. asset freeze against an entire government in the Western Hemisphere in more than thirty years and gave U.S. authorities unprecedented powers over finances tied to the Caribbean nation.

Trump resorted to the asset freeze after successive rounds of sanctions failed to dislodge Maduro or peel away his military's backing for him.

Bolton, one of the Trump administration's most influential hawks on Venezuela, warned Maduro ally Russia against doubling down on its "bad bet," and urged China to recognize opposition leader Juan Guaido as the country's legitimate leader if it wanted to recoup debt owed by Caracas.

Bolton said the U.S. government would ensure that Maduro ran out of ways to finance himself and he warned that a new government in Venezuela might not want to honor agreements made with countries that helped Maduro hang onto power.

Bolton had told Peruvian officials in private on Monday that the measure would have the effect of about tripling current sanctions related to Venezuela, a Peruvian government source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

It could also inflame the U.S.-China trade war if it hits Beijing hard, with Venezuela owing China oil deliveries as repayment for loans through 2021, said Fernando Cutz, a former top aide to Trump on the National Security Council.

 

Asked by a reporter how Venezuela would respond to the executive order, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza said: "I'm going to paraphrase Donald Trump ... All options are on the table."

 

Venezuela’s U.N. Ambassador Samuel Moncada asked U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the Security Council on Tuesday to intervene.

 

"This is an act of war by the United States," Moncada told reporters. "Venezuela is not a threat to anyone and the United States is fabricating this aggression just to take the oil."

 

The 15-member U.N. Security Council will be unable to take any action as the United States is one of the body’s five veto powers, along with Russia, China, Britain and France.

 

It was the first U.S. asset freeze against an entire government in the Western Hemisphere in more than 30 years. But it was also a reminder that successive rounds of U.S. sanctions have so far failed to peel away the crucial support of Venezuela's military for Maduro, who took office in 2013 following the death of his political mentor President Hugo Chavez.

 

Continuing the state controls started under Chavez, Maduro has overseen one of the worst economic collapses in recent world history, leaving his nation of 30 million people with severe shortages of food and medicine despite sitting on the world's largest oil reserves.

 

In private, Bolton had told Peruvian officials the measure would have the effect of about tripling current sanctions related to Venezuela, a Peruvian government source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

 

The executive order stopped short, however, of a full U.S. trade embargo of the kind imposed on Cuba, experts said, by excluding Venezuela's still sizeable private sector.

 

The order maintains some exemptions for companies that do business with state oil company PDVSA [PDVSA.UL], and licenses published on Tuesday reiterated that companies like Chevron and Halliburton can continue to do business with PDVSA in Venezuela through Oct. 25.

 

Some experts said the move could lead to pushback from other countries, and would require a lot of time and money to prove foreign companies are undermining sanctions.

 

"How much is the U.S. government willing to spend in diplomatic capital in economic costs in the United States, in order to further its Venezuela policy? said David Murray of the Washington-based firm Financial Integrity Network, an expert on sanctions compliance.

 

RUSSIA: 'ECONOMIC TERROR'

Most Western and Latin American democracies accuse Maduro of rigging elections last year and are calling for him to step down so the country can hold a fresh presidential ballot.

 

The summit, organised by Peru, a regional leader on demanding democratic reforms in Venezuela, had aimed to build support for new elections with Maduro's allies. Yet Russia, China, Cuba, Turkey, Bolivia and Iran all boycotted the summit.

 

Russia's foreign ministry said on Tuesday that Washington's asset freeze was illegal and amounted to "economic terror", the RIA news agency reported.

 

The order also could inflame the U.S.-China trade war if it hits Beijing hard, with Venezuela owing China oil deliveries as repayment for loans through 2021, said Fernando Cutz, a former top aide to Trump on the National Security Council.

 

Bolton warned Russia against doubling down on its support for Caracas, and urged China to recognise opposition leader Juan Guaido as the country's legitimate leader if it wanted to recoup debt owed by Caracas, since a new government in Venezuela might not want to honour agreements made with countries that helped Maduro hang onto power.

 

Bolton said Washington had taken steps to ensure the sanctions did not hurt Guaido and his allies, nor prevent access to humanitarian goods.

 

Trump's Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross also spoke to the Lima summit, promising U.S. support and cooperation to help Venezuela rebuild its oil sector, institutions and economy once Maduro leaves office, without giving details.

 

The plan has a goal of reversing Venezuela's decline in oil production within a year, and calls for a long-term deal with the International Monetary Fund, Ross said.

 

(Reporting By Mitra Taj in Lima, Additional Reporting by Roberta Rampton in Washington, Brian Ellsworth and Luc Cohen in Caracas and Michelle Nichols in New York; Editing by Alistair Bell)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-08-07

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[daoyai]

not a good move, Americans are tired of foreign intervention.

[Pedrogaz]

Illegal over-reach ij jurisdiction by the US.....typical of this administration that has weaponised every financial system. 

This is yet another nail in the coffin of the dollar as reserve currency. The opening of Instex which is being looked at by China and Russia for transactions in Euros instead of dollars. If Instex and other ideas gain acceptance then the dollar is dead and no one need sleep large amounts of dollars in their Treasuries.....mean the ability of the US to keep financing itself with cheap loans from foreign Treasuries will evaporate.  

[fxe1200]

All these actions of the U.S. are against international law. Why we do not hear anything from the UN?

[JemJem]

Venezuela is targetted by the US; but, other human rights abusers, such as Myanmar, Turkey, Israel, Saudi Arabia (the list goes on......) are seen as allies !

 

And, something that really annoys me is the ongoing talks between the US and Taliban ! Has the suffering of the 9/11 victims and their loved ones been forgotten ?! The fight against Taliban should (well, I guess, sadly now I must say 'should have', because it is almost certain that the US won't fight Taliban anymore very soon) go until this Islamofascist terror group is defeated to a large extent (just like ISIS has been).

[Spike1938]

By golly and by gosh Exxon's hawk in the government hen house, Bolton, is going to get his client's that Venezuelan oil they feel is rightfully theirs. Chavez had it set up so that old profits went to the general population and the good 'ol US of A cannot allow that. So just set it up so they can't sell their oil and cause unrest that will topple the Maduro government and the USA serfs in the country can then sell it off to Exxon Mobil.

 

[Bluespunk]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

We are sending a signal to third parties that want to do business with the Maduro regime: proceed with extreme caution," Bolton said.

No, you’re threatening countries to get them to bend to your will. 

[soalbundy]

7 hours ago, daoyai said:

not a good move, Americans are tired of foreign intervention.

so is the rest of the world, the schoolyard bully will be ignored at lunchtime

[CharlieH]

Post with derogatory term removed.

[Jingthing]

Can it work?

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[jany123]

11 hours ago, webfact said:

Trump's Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross also spoke to the Lima summit, promising U.S. support and cooperation to help Venezuela rebuild its oil sector, institutions and economy once Maduro leaves office, without giving details.

 

Sounds like a US sanctioned assassination of Maduro is being suggested as a panacea for all of Venezuela’s problems.... which could well backfire with an assassination of Guido, leaving no alternative to Maduro. 

 

Im actually surprised that one or the other isn’t already decomposing.

[Baerboxer]

2 hours ago, Bluespunk said:

No, you’re threatening countries to get them to bend to your will. 

 

Which is what all powerful countries do, given the chance.

[Jingthing]

 
Sounds like a US sanctioned assassination of Maduro is being suggested as a panacea for all of Venezuela’s problems.... which could well backfire with an assassination of Guido, leaving no alternative to Maduro. 
 
Im actually surprised that one or the other isn’t already decomposing.

Seems far fetched.

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[jany123]

1 minute ago, Jingthing said:

Seems far fetched.
 

An assassination? Far fetched? Really?

 

Dictators pushed from power often end up dead, so I doubt Maduro will step down willingly, but I suppose we will see in time.

 

far fetched might be to suggest that this would lead to a new Cold War, which was my first far fetched thought, ????

[Dumbastheycome]

The US is decidedly positioning itself for confrontation everywhere now. It is attempting to counter economic failure with  militaristic threat. Pathetic and  dangerous. It  may win a  battle  but  will ultimately  lose  (another)  war. But in doing so  will relegate itself if not obliterate itself in  taking that path.

[soalbundy]

13 hours ago, Baerboxer said:

 

Which is what all powerful countries do, given the chance.

True but the others are a little more subtle about how they go about it.