The Biden Administration is on defense over its plan to replace oil imports banned from Russia after its invasion of Ukraine with imports from Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro, who is aligned with Vladimir Putin and is not recognized by the United States as the country’s legitimate leader.
Critics include the man the United States recognizes as the Venezuelan President, Juan Guaido, who has been briefed by U.S. officials, according to the Miami Herald.
The Miami Herald reported on the negotiations using mostly unnamed sources:
Two sources in Venezuela’s opposition told the Miami Herald on Friday that the administration was already moving last weekend toward a deal with Maduro on oil imports, and, during a controversial visit to Caracas on March 5, was planning to grant American oil giant Chevron a special license to resume activities in Venezuela. A third source in the Venezuelan opposition said that Chevron’s license was ready to be issued, and that the administration was simply waiting for an opportune moment to announce it.
But following widespread criticism of the meeting, the White House has been changing its message, suggesting there are internal debates on how to move forward with the controversial negotiations.
The Herald reported that on Wednesday, a “senior administration official” told reporters that “there are no talks between us and the regime” about oil sales from Venezuela.
“We traveled down there to secure the release of detained Americans and to urge a return to the negotiating table, which is something that, again, the international community and even representatives from the opposition had urged us to do,” the senior official said.
“This is not currently, at this moment, an active conversation about importing their oil,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters on Thursday.
The Herald report continued:
High-ranking sources within the Venezuelan opposition told the Miami Herald that U.S. officials not only offered Maduro the possibility of granting a special license to Chevron. They also briefed Juan Guaido, the opposition leader Washington still publicly considers the legitimate president of the South American country, directly after the meeting.
Guaido was reported to have said he could not understand how the U.S. could stop buying oil from Russian President Vladimir Putin and consider buying it from another dictator.
Maduro has been outspoken about his support for Russia, as Breitbart News reported:
“The extremist right that has taken over the governments of Ukraine has never been interested in resolving conflicts via dialogue, has never been interested in peace, has never been interested in respecting Russia,” Maduro claimed during a broadcast in late February immediately after the Russian assault on Kyiv began. “That’s why Venezuela announces its complete backing to President Vladimir Putin in the defense of peace of Russia in the defense of peace in that region, in the valiant peace of his people and his fatherland.”
“All the support for President Putin, all the support for Russia,” Maduro emphasized.
In September 2020, the United Nations issued a report claiming Maduro has committed systematic human rights violations, including killings and torture that amount to “crimes against humanity.”
The Herald reported Russia is Venezuela’s main military supplier, and Putin has helped Maduro bypass U.S. sanctions. Much of the regime’s fortune is being held in Russian banks.
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