Venezuelan opposition asks the US to suspend oil ‘licenses’ to put pressure on Maduro

The Venezuelan opposition called on the United States to revoke "licenses" to Venezuelan oil companies with the intention of pressuring Nicolas Maduro's regime to negotiate a "peaceful and orderly transition" of power.

"The oil companies that are working in Venezuela do so with a license from the Treasury Department," María Corina Machado's political advisor in the United States, Rafael de la Cruz, recalled this Monday at a conference organized by the Americas Society/Council of the Americas in New York.

These permits, in a context of Washington's sanctions on Caracas, were intended to "stimulate the government to negotiate again with the United States," according to de la Cruz. But "they have not worked" and, on the contrary, "they are a lifeline for the regime," he assured.

The oil companies operating in Venezuela through these licenses are, according to de la Cruz, U.S.-based company Chevron, Italian company Eni and Spanish company Repsol, which held a meeting with the regime of Nicolás Maduro recently.

Regarding that meeting, said de la Cruz, when the Venezuelan regime "sits down to negotiate," it does so "because it has significant economic pressure." The Venezuelan opposition is demanding this pressure from the United States to recognize the popular will that, last July 28, "overwhelmingly" called for a change in Venezuela.

However, the election was of little use. Nicolás Maduro proclaimed himself the winner of the elections, despite the fact that, AFP recalls, almost two months later he still has not presented the voting records.

Meanwhile, four laws concerning Venezuela are being processed in Congress, and "at least three of them have a provision on the issue of suspending licenses," recalled María Corina Machado's advisor.

"If the United States ends up making the decision not to continue renewing the licenses, or Congress ... passes a law that forces the administration not to grant licenses, that is going to be very important additional pressure," he maintained.

It would force Maduro to sit down to negotiate and "agree on guarantees" so that the regime will hand over the government in a "peaceful and orderly manner."

For Gustavo García, Machado's economic advisor, there are "enormous opportunities" for investors in Venezuela, particularly in the oil sector, where production could go from the current 900,000 barrels per day to 3.5 or 4 million.

De la Cruz acknowledged that at this time, the opposition does not have "direct communication" with the regime.