Trump declares national emergency to protect Venezuelan oil revenues
Donald Trump declared a national emergency to prevent Venezuelan government creditors from accessing its oil profits
With the aim of preventing Venezuelan external debt creditors from seizing its oil revenues, which are under the protection of the US Treasury Department, President Donald Trump declared a national emergency.
“President Trump is “Preventing the seizure of Venezuelan oil revenues that could undermine critical US efforts to ensure economic and political stability in Venezuela,” states part of a press release issued by the White House.
Recently, the Republican president indicated that he will control sales of Venezuelan crude and choose US companies to revive its industry with investments of up to $100 billion.
Through an order signed under the title “Safeguarding Venezuelan Oil Revenues for the Good of the American and Venezuelan People,” Trump “blocks any embargo, judgment, decree, lien, execution, or any other legal process against” funds held by the US government from the sale of Venezuelan oil.
Furthermore, it “prohibits transfers or dealings” with respect to said resources.
“The order states that the funds are the sovereign property of Venezuela held in US custody for governmental purposes and “Diplomats, who are not subject to private claims,” the letter emphasizes. According to information released by the Center on Global Energy Policy (CGEP) at Columbia University, since 2007, when former President Hugo Chavez took control of Venezuela's facilities and refineries that operated with the participation of multinationals such as ExxonMobil, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips, to name a few, there have been nearly 60 arbitrations against the Bolivarian Republic, representing more than $30 billion.
This explains the position adopted by Donald Trump to prevent the creditors of the South American nation from accessing what, in concrete terms, would be almost 15% of its national debt.
In this way, it is guaranteed that the Venezuelan funds generated by its crude oil sales will remain in Treasury accounts in the name of the government headed by Delcy Rodriguez and the state-owned company, Petroleos de Venezuela, SA.