Citgo reaction of Venezuelan President Maduro to the US and the opposition
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has claimed that the US administration looted money from Citgo, the US subsidiary of Venezuela’s state oil company PDVSA, with the help of the opposition.
Speaking about the “Más con Maduro” program, Maduro said that the US has extorted billions of dollars belonging to Venezuela with the extremist opposition in the country.
Calling for the unity of the Venezuelan people, Maduro said: “We have waged a tremendous fight around the world to recover the stolen goods from Venezuela. We have witnessed perverse acts against our national sovereignty, our economic and oil sovereignty. What was stolen from the Citgo company is simply a disgrace. All Venezuelans must raise their voices against the US and say ‘stop’ to the looting and robbery. “Citgo belongs to the Venezuelans,” he said.
‘BILLION DOLLAR SHIP’
Pointing out that the far-right opposition that participated in the dialogue process in Mexico was behind the money stolen from the Citgo company, Maduro pointed out that billions of dollars belonging to PDVSA were stolen.
Recalling the importance of Citgo for Venezuelans, Maduro said: “Citgo is a company with more than 10,000 service stations and 3 powerful refineries. It is a super corporation owned by Venezuelans. We cannot accept that it be looted, stolen and taken from Venezuela by the empire that imposes the rules of the game beyond international law”. saying.
FIGHT AGAINST COVID-19
Noting that they are one of the countries that fought against the disease despite economic sanctions during the Covid-19 epidemic, Maduro affirmed that they overcame the epidemic thanks to the vaccines they received from China, Russia and Cuba.
Referring to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, Maduro stated that they support the diplomatic initiatives of China and Brazil.
Maduro, in his statements at various times, stated that he did not expect to negotiate with the opposition again, and that his country’s resources seized in international banks had not yet been delivered.
The United States handed over control of the Venezuelan state currency to the opposition
“All sanctions must be lifted without conditions,” Maduro said on April 26. We want the 3.2 billion dollars agreed with the opposition and confiscated by the United States to be released and transferred to the social investment fund”. he had evaluated.
CITGO ACCOUNTS HAVE BEEN SEEN
The US, which did not accept the legitimacy of Maduro, handed over control of the PDVSA and Citgo accounts to the former president of the National Assembly Juan Guaidó, who proclaimed himself interim president of Venezuela, on January 29, 2019.
In his statement on the same day, Maduro said of the US decision to impose sanctions on the country’s oil companies PDVSA and Citgo: “With these sanction decisions they want to steal Citgo from Venezuelans. Thus, we understand that the US objective is to seize the wealth of Venezuela. We will give the United States the necessary legal response to protect the interests of Venezuela.” he said.
Noting that approximately 75 percent of PDVSA’s cash is in the United States, the experts commented that this means that the authority to use the oil accounts, which is the cornerstone of the Venezuelan economy, passes to Guiado. (AA)