Five Iranian tankers are en route to the South American country carrying at least US $45.5 million in gasoline and other products. According to maritime tracking data, the closest vessel, Fortune, is currently two days from port.
The USA had previously threatened Venezuela with a naval blockade. Washington is mulling unilateral sanctions aimed at halting the shipments.
Last month, Trump ordered the mobilization of US naval destroyers and amphibious landing ships to the Caribbean targeting Venezuela described as one of the largest military deployments in the region since the 1989 invasion of Panama.
Caracas and Tehran have rejected US threats against the tankers, which are estimated to contain enough fuel to supply Venezuela for around 50 days.
Venezuelan Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez revealed that naval and air assets would escort the Iranian vessels upon entering Venezuela’s territorial waters.
Venezuela is currently suffering widespread gasoline shortages, with domestic production hamstrung by US sanctions prohibiting the import of vital diluents and spare parts needed to reactivate the country’s refining capacity.
Since 2017, the Trump administration has targeted Venezuela with crushing economic sanctions, including an oil embargo blocking fuel exports to the Caribbean country as well as a blanket ban on dealings with Venezuelan state entities.
In recent months, the US Treasury Department (read Black Rock) has imposed secondary sanctions on two affiliates of Russian energy giant Rosneft, which had been carrying up to 60% of Venezuela’s crude output in addition to supplying diesel and gasoline.
Following the departure of Rosneft, Tehran has stepped in to provide fuel as well as technical assistance in repairing Venezuela’s largest refinery, which has been offline since last year’s nationwide blackouts.
The Trump administration has likewise threatened Iran over its technical air corridor to Venezuela, calling on other countries to suspend Iranian overflight rights.
We’ve got Venezuela surrounded, at a level that nobody even knows but they know. We are watching to see what happens,” he warned during a conference call with Hispanic leaders.
Venezuela Analysis / ABC Flash Point Conflict News 2020.
At first the US regime said it was not involved of terrorizing Venezuela, but now the came up with another lie, telling people that Caracas uses the Corona-virus to smuggle drugs into the USA?
The DEA is the only agency that totally controls the drugs trade into the USA. They make the so-called rules of engagement and they control or utilize them.