The administration of former President Joe Biden reportedly reached a secret deal allowing oil giant Chevron to pay hundreds of millions of dollars to Venezuela's authoritarian government.
Concretely, Bloomberg reported on Friday that a supplement to a sanctions waiver from November 2022 allowed the company to remain in compliance with U.S. law while paying oil royalties and taxes in the South American country.
The initial waiver from the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) had given the company permission to conduct limited operations in the country.
However, in late 2022 the Biden administration lifted sanctions on the country amid negotiations with the opposition and as an incentive to pave the way toward freer and fairer elections.
Venezuela ended up holding presidential elections, but the Maduro regime remained in power despite failing to present supporting documentation. The opposition, in turn, presented receipts showing that Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia won overwhelmingly. The authoritarian government then repressed protesters and went after opposition leaders, prompting Urrutia to flee to Spain. As a result, the Biden administration reimposed sanctions but left Chevron's license in place.
The Trump administration went further, revoking oil concessions in late February, saying he was terminating what he called the "ineffective and unmet Biden 'Concession Agreement'." He claimed that Nicolás Maduro's government had not adhered to promised electoral reforms and had failed to repatriate Venezuelan migrants in the U.S. at the expected pace.
"We are hereby reversing the concessions that Crooked Joe Biden gave to Nicolás Maduro, of Venezuela, on the oil transaction agreement, dated November 26, 2022, and also having to do with Electoral conditions within Venezuela, which have not been met by the Maduro regime," Trump wrote. "Additionally, the regime has not been transporting the violent criminals that they sent into our Country (the Good Ole' U.S.A.) back to Venezuela at the rapid pace that they had agreed to."
The administration initially gave the company until April 3 to wind down operations, but is reportedly set to extend it for at least 30 more days. Chevron CEO Mike Wirth discussed a potential extension in a meeting with President Donald Trump and other oil executives at the White House on Wednesday, with Trump reportedly being open to the idea.
Chevron ramped up production in the South American country over the past years, now representing about a fifth of its overall output. Its activities have helped prop up Venezuela's battered economy. Critics have argued that the company's operations are providing a lifeline to an authoritarian regime that has encroached to power.
The Trump administration is also set to expand its economic offensive against the country, pressuring more companies to cease their operations in the South American country.
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