“National Emergency” announced by Trump!
Miami, Jan. 10 (EFE).-
United States President Donald Trump declared a “national emergency” on Saturday to protect revenues from Venezuelan oil sales in US Treasury accounts, which would prevent creditors of Venezuela’s foreign debt from claiming the funds.
The order “affirms the funds are sovereign property of Venezuela” even when held in US custody for government and diplomatic purposes, and therefore not subject to private claims.
It also “blocks any attachment, judgment, decree, lien, execution, garnishment, or other judicial process against Foreign Government Deposit Funds.”
The decree was published after Friday’s meeting between oil executives and Trump, who offered the world’s leading hydrocarbon companies long-term government protection and security to achieve his goal of investing 100 billion dollars in Venezuela’s oil industry.
It also reaffirms the announcement by Energy Secretary Chris Wright, who said on Wednesday that the United States will control Venezuelan crude oil sales “indefinitely” and deposit the money derived from those transactions into US government accounts.
The order concludes that “By safeguarding these oil revenues, President Trump is promoting stability in Venezuela while advancing America First objectives: stopping illegal immigration, blocking deadly narcotics, and countering malign foreign influence.”
Following the oil expropriation carried out by the late Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez (1999-2013), there have been nearly 60 arbitration cases against Venezuela since 2000, with an estimated value of 30 billion dollars, almost 15% of its international debt, according to data from Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy (CGEP). EFE
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