Venezuela: Trump Imposes New Economic Sanctions
By Sara Barderas (dpa)
HAVANA TIMES – President Donald Trump today banned all US citizens from all types of transactions with petros, the cryptocurrency launched by Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela. He also imposed a new round of sanctions against a group of government officials, reported dpa news.
“Investing in the petro must be seen as directly supporting this dictatorship,” said a senior Trump government official referring to Maduro’s government.
The executive order, signed by the president in the Oval Office shortly after noon (local), vetoes every US citizen and company from carrying out operations with all digital currency or digital card issued by Venezuela since January 9.
Trump noted the decree is an additional step in view of the “recent actions taken by the Maduro regime to evade US sanctions.”
Cryptocurrencies are virtual means of payment that allow an independent exchange of governments and banks with the participants in anonymity. The best known case is bitcoin.
Petro is the first cryptocurrency launched by a State. The Maduro government put it on sale on February 20, amid the fall in oil revenues and the difficulty in issuing new debt and refinancing through US institutions due to Washington’s earlier sanctions.
To back up the cryptocurrency, Caracas put forth a field with 5 billion barrels of crude oil. The Government of Maduro claims to have received orders to buy the petro for US$ 5 billion.
The decree signed by Trump prohibits all transactions, financing provisions and other operations related to US citizens and companies within the United States.
Washington maintains the petro was launched to circumvent the sanctions it has imposed since the arrival of Trump to the White House.
The Republican administration, however, did not give an estimated figure of how the executive order will impact the financing of the Maduro government.
Trump authorized the Secretary of the Treasury, Steven Mnuchin, to issue any regulation that would serve to implement the decree.
“President Maduro decimated the Venezuelan economy and provoked a humanitarian crisis, instead of correcting the course to avoid a major catastrophe, the Maduro regime is trying to circumvent the sanctions through the petro,” Mnuchin said in a statement.
The head of the Treasury is participating in the meeting of the G-20 in Argentina, where he discussed the Venezuelan issue with his counterparts from the American region and Europe.
Venezuela has become the center of Trump’s Latin American policy. Since his arrival at the White House, he has imposed several rounds of sanctions against more than fifty officials of Maduro’s political environment, including the Venezuelan president himself. It also imposed a round of financial sanctions to stifle the Venezuelan Government’s funding.
Two hours after Trump signed the executive order today on the petro, the Treasury Department increased by four the list of senior officials sanctioned. One of them is a vice minister. None of the four is related to the petro.
The Trump government keeps on the table the possibility of an oil embargo. A senior official confirmed today that the measure continues to study the variables of damage that would affect the US economy, that of the countries in the region and also the impact it would have on the Venezuelan people.
The Maduro government of Venezuela is the Castro government’s leading political and economic ally.
Brother Alberto Jones, Therein, lies the HYPOCRISY of the USA. LIFE is like a BOOMERANG; whatever you throw out at it, that is EXACTLY what will be returned to you. The USA has been INTERFERRING in the Internal affairs of countries for ages. The USA is now fuming that RUSSIA interferred in its 2016 electoral process, yet, here it is MEDDLING in the INTERNAL AFFAIRS of an INDEPENDENT VENEZUELA! Now, if it was wrong for RUSSIA to MEDDLE, what gives the USA the right to MEDDLE? WRONG WILL ALWAYS BE WRONG! Wrong cannot be right for some and WRONG for some! WRONG WILL ALWAYS BE WRONG, WRONG, WRONG!! You see, LOVE SO, doesn’t have so!
Dear Olgasntamales, If the Venezuelan Government is CRIMINAL, what do you say to the TRUMP ADMINISRATION? President Maduro was elected by his people and Donald Trump was also elected by his people! What Gives Trump the MORAL AUTHORITY to impose economic Sanctions against Venezuela? What about Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, The Arab Emirates, Jordan and all the other Middle East countries where no elections are ever held? Who has imposed the role of Judge, Jury, Prosecutor on the hypocritical USA? What has Venezuela, an Independent, Sovereign Country and a Member of the United Nations done to the Mighty USA, for it to unilaterally impose sanctions on the country? The USA needs to clean up its own dirty yard before it can be the shining light of example for others to emulate or for it to come forth pointing accusing fingers at other countries. It therefore presenting itself as a BULLYING FORCE!
That’s probably what made Russia meddle into the US internal affairs.
Excellent news. This criminal regime needs to go