Miriam,
Don't be ashamed to be an American. You did not campaign or vote for
those in power. Be ashamed of those who are so easily fooled that
they are charmed by the rantings of an insane man.
Carl Jarvis
On 4/8/19, Miriam Vieni <miriamvieni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Trump Administration Tries to Stop the Transport of Venezuelan Oil to Cuba
By Alex Daugherty, McClatchy D.C.
07 April 19
The Trump administration is trying to make it harder for Nicolás Maduro to
send oil to Cuba.
The Treasury Department on Friday announced sanctions against two shipping
companies and one vessel for transporting oil between Venezuela and Cuba,
as
the United States has declared that Venezuela’s oil resources belong to
Juan
Guaido’s interim government and not Maduro.
An additional 34 vessels owned by PDVSA, Venezuela’s state-run oil company,
were also identified as blocked property by the Treasury Department. The
U.S. government and lawmakers have said that Venezuela sends oil to Cuba in
exchange for security and intelligence services, using a lucrative natural
resource to help Maduro maintain power instead of helping to alleviate
Venezuela’s humanitarian crisis.
“Cuba has been an underlying force fueling Venezuela’s descent into crisis.
Treasury is taking action against vessels and entities transporting oil,
providing a lifeline to keep the illegitimate Maduro regime afloat,”
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement. “Cuba continues to
profit from, and prop up, the illegitimate Maduro regime through
oil-for-repression schemes as they attempt to keep Maduro in power. The
United States remains committed to a transition to democracy in Venezuela
and to holding the Cuban regime accountable for its direct involvement in
Venezuela’s demise.”
The two companies who were sanctioned are the owner and operator of a crude
oil tanker named Despina Andrianna, which the Treasury Department said
delivered oil from Venezuela to Cuba in February and March. The companies
are the Liberia-based owner Ballito Bay Shipping and Greek operator ProPer
In Management. The Treasury Department also listed the names of the 34
PdVSA-owned vessels that are part of the ongoing exchange of oil between
Venezuela and Cuba.
The sanctions come a day before planned protests by Guaido supporters in
Venezuela.
“POTUS is taking action against a vital source of the Maduro regime’s
wealth,” Vice President Mike Pence tweeted. “Venezuela’s oil belongs to the
Venezuelan people!”
“Today will be a bad day for regime in Cuba for a couple of reasons,”
Florida Sen. Marco Rubio tweeted. “Sanctions on the tankers stealing oil
from Venezuela is one.”
Rubio also sent a letter on Friday to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and
Mnuchin urging them to declare armed militia groups in Venezuela known as
colectivos a terrorist organization and designate Maduro’s regime as a
transnational criminal organization.
“The crisis in Venezuela continues to destabilize the region and threaten
U.S. national security,” Rubio wrote. “Given that the United States and
over
50 other nations now recognize Interim President Juan Guaidó—and therefore
no longer recognize the regime of Nicolás Maduro as the official Government
of Venezuela—it is time for the Executive Branch to take important and
necessary steps to further isolate Maduro and make clear to the world his
regime’s illegality, criminality, and depravity.”
Miriam's comment: I'm really ashamed to be an American.
e