US wants Venezuela cut economic ties with Russia, China, Iran, Cuba

(MENAFN) The United States has reportedly demanded that Venezuela cut its economic connections with Russia, China, Iran, and Cuba if it wants to expand oil production. This directive comes after a nighttime U.S. operation in which commandos captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores—a move that Caracas has denounced as a breach of its sovereignty.

The U.S. seeks exclusive cooperation with American companies in Venezuela’s oil industry, with President Donald Trump arguing that these firms should gain access to reserves nationalized under Hugo Chavez. On Tuesday, Trump stated that “the interim authorities” in Venezuela would be “turning over” between 30 and 50 million barrels of sanctioned oil under U.S. control.

In response, Delcy Rodriguez, a Maduro ally sworn in as acting president, asserted that neither the United States nor any other “foreign agent” would govern Venezuela. Authorities in Caracas have called for the release of Maduro and Flores, who pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking and weapons charges in a New York court on Monday.

Venezuelan Prosecutor General Tarek Saab condemned the operation, describing it as “an illegal act of armed aggression of a terrorist nature” carried out without a declaration of war or a UN Security Council resolution. At the UN, Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia denounced the abduction as “a cynical crime that cannot be justified,” while Chinese envoy Sun Lei warned that the U.S. intervention threatens peace and security in the region.

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