Venezuela and US Delegations May Meet in Trinidad and Tobago

Representatives of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and US President Joe Biden may meet once more in Trinidad and Tobago, to continue negotiations on the shipment of oil from Venezuela to the United States, claimed The Economist.

According to an article published by The Economist, the representatives of the Venezuelan government to participate in this high-level meeting may be the Executive Vice President, Delcy Rodríguez, and Foreign Affairs Minister Félix Plasencia. The Economist did not say who could be the envoys of the Biden administration. It also did not specify when this meeting could take place.

The first meeting between delegations from the two countries took place in early March, when US Ambassador James Story and Joe Biden’s adviser for the Western Hemisphere Juan González arrived in Venezuela to meet with representatives of the Maduro government in Caracas.

Several right-wing politicians of Venezuela criticized the meeting. However, shortly thereafter, another opposition group wrote a letter to the Biden government, asking the US to ease the sanctions on Venezuela so that oil companies can reactivate their activities in the country.

One of these companies is Chevron, whose license is due to expire in June, so it needs to renew it with the US government as soon as possible if it is to maintain even its closing up operations in Venezuela.

Other US companies are also asking for the lifting of sanctions to resume their activities and to export crude oil to the US, which is currently experiencing an energy crisis due to sharp rise in gasoline prices, as a consequence of its own economic measures imposed on Russia.

The US has indicated that the lifting of sanctions will depend the outcome of the negotiations between the Venezuelan government and right-wing the opposition, which was being held in Mexico last year. These negotiations are currently suspended.

The head of the Venezuelan government delegation, Jorge Rodríguez, stated that the negotiations are currently undergoing a restructuring process, so that all sectors of the country can participate.

Featured image: President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro (left), and US President Joe Biden (right). Photo: RedRadioVE.

(RedRadioVE) by Ana Perdigón

Translation: Orinoco Tribune

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