Page 4 - LatAmOil Week 05 2020

LatAmOil COMMENTARY LatAmOil
US President Donald Trump (L) met with Venezuela’s Interim President Juan Guaido (R) this week (Photo: Twitter/@jguaido)
US may be gearing up to impose
additional sanctions on Venezuela
“Absolutely everything is an option” with respect to ratcheting up the pressure, senior of cial says
WHAT:
Washington has advised oil companies still doing business with PdVSA to “tread cautiously.”
WHY:
Guaido may be losing some of his allies in Caracas.
WHAT NEXT:
Chevron may not be able to obtain further exemptions from the sanctions regime.
THE US government stepped up its criticism of Nicolas Maduro, the president of Venezuela, this week ahead of a meeting between President Donald Trump and Juan Guaido, the leader of Venezuela’s political opposition.
Guaido was named interim president of the South American country early last year, fol- lowing Maduro’s re-election in a vote that was marred by accusations of fraud. e US and a number of other countries have recognised Guaido’s claim to power, while others still back Maduro.)
Washington has already imposed sanctions on Caracas (and on Venezuelan businesses and individuals) within the framework of its cam- paign to unseat Maduro.
But a senior o cial said on February 5 that additional trade restrictions were now under consideration.
“Absolutely everything is an option,” and the US intends to take “some impactful measures within the next 30 days,” he said during a con- ference call with reporters.
e o cial, who was not named, did not say what steps Washington might take. But he did say that the US was putting oil operators that are still doing business with Caracas on notice. All of the companies in this category should con- sider their options carefully, he said during a conference call with reporters.
“Whether it’s Rosne , whether it’s Reliance, whether it’s Repsol, whether it’s Chevron here
in the United States, I would tread cautiously towards their activities in Venezuela that are in support, directly or indirectly, of the Maduro dictatorship because ... we’re halfway through
our maximum pressure campaign,” said the o -
cial, whose name has not been revealed. 
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