“Takes negotiations unnecessary”: Trump has blocked the assets of the Venezuelan government in the United States

The United States of America blocked the property of the Venezuelan authorities, which are under American jurisdiction, and forbade the provision of any assistance to blacklisted officials of the US Treasury Department for controlling foreign assets. This is stated in the presidential decree of Donald trump, which entered into force on August 5.

“All property and property interests of the Venezuelan government, which are or will be in the United States in the future, owned or controlled by any person from the United States, are blocked and cannot be transferred, paid, exported, seized or subject to other operations,” in the decree.

The corresponding decision was made by the head of the White House in connection with the fact that the legitimate president of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, and related persons allegedly continue to “usurp power, violate human rights, arrest and detain Venezuelan citizens, infringe on the free press, and discredit” the President of the National Assembly, Juan Guaido, who, with US support, declared himself interim president.

As noted in the document, the wording “government of Venezuela” includes any political unit, department and their representatives who act on behalf of the “Maduro regime”. These include the Central Bank of Venezuela and the state-owned oil company PDVSA, which is the largest in the country.

In the material of the American newspaper The Washington Post, Trump’s decree was described as “introducing a complete economic embargo” on Venezuela, which puts the Bolivarian Republic on a par with Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria.

Earlier, Venezuelan Permanent Representative to the UN Samuel Moncada called on the Organization’s Security Council to prevent the country's economic blockade and stop the “Trump war” against Caracas.

Recall that the political crisis in Venezuela intensified at the end of January after the President of the National Assembly, Juan Guaido, declared himself “interim” of the head of state. He was almost immediately supported in Washington, as well as in several other countries of Latin America and Europe. Despite this, as well as various provocative and destabilizing actions, in particular, attacks on the Venezuelan energy system, attempts to remove Nicholas Maduro from his post failed.

In spring, negotiations began between the legitimate authorities of Venezuela and the opposition in Norway. At the moment, there are no specific agreements, but the head of the Bolivarian Republic has no doubt that the negotiators have reached a "great agreement on peace and coexistence."

Meanwhile, the American authorities for seven months impose various financial restrictions on individuals working in the interests of the legitimate government of Venezuela. One of the last such actions was the introduction by the US Treasury Department of restrictive measures against ten individuals and 13 companies primarily engaged in the supply of food products to the republic.

“No country can be at rest”

According to Vladimir Shapovalov, deputy director of the Institute of History and Politics of the IPSU, Trump’s decision is arbitrariness and dictatorship by the largest economy in the world, which is also Venezuela’s main economic partner.

“In Washington, they once again demonstrate that all statements made before this about the interest in the fate of the Venezuelan people are fictitious. There is no interest whatsoever, otherwise the United States would not introduce harsh measures that would strike at the Venezuelan economy and, consequently, at the state of Venezuelan citizens, ”the expert emphasized.

He also drew attention to the fact that sanctions are being introduced at a time when in the negotiation process between the warring parties there were hopes that the political confrontation in Venezuela would end with a compromise and peace.

“This indicates that for the United States it is not important some kind of agreement and peace in Venezuela, but further political and economic destabilization, which is bad news for all countries of the world, for the countries of Latin America that are close to the United States and depend on their economics. In fact, no country can be at rest, because the United States can at any time introduce appropriate measures against a sovereign state, ”Shapovalov said in an interview with RT.

In turn, an expert at the International Institute for Humanitarian and Political Studies Vladimir Bruter also pointed out that the White House only exacerbated the crisis in Venezuela.

“Obviously, Trump considers the negotiation process a thing unnecessary and unnecessary. In my opinion, negotiations are, of course, a useful thing, but counting on the fact that the dialogue between Maduro and the opposition will lead to a stable settlement of the situation in Venezuela is excessive optimism. But the United States in this case has the opportunity to destroy the entire negotiation process, which, in fact, they did at the moment when they considered that it could lead to unnecessary results for them, ”the source said.