Venezuela condemns US oil blockade as violation of international law
In an official statement, Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodriguez accused President Trump of making “reckless and serious threats” that infringe upon principles of free trade and freedom of navigation.
The statement followed Trump’s announcement on Monday that he had ordered a “total and complete blockade” on sanctioned vessels entering or leaving Venezuela, amid a buildup of US forces off the country’s northern coast in the Caribbean Sea.
Caracas described the measure as “grotesque,” alleging that Trump seeks to seize the nation’s natural resources. The government accused him of acting as if Venezuela’s “oil, land, and mineral wealth are his property.”
On his US social media platform Truth Social, Trump claimed that Venezuela was “completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the history of South America.” He warned that pressure would increase until Caracas returned “all of the oil, land, and other assets that they previously stole from us,” possibly referencing the nationalization of US assets in previous decades.
The confrontation marks a new peak in a months-long US pressure campaign on Venezuela.
Over the past four months, US forces have maintained a growing presence in the Caribbean and carried out strikes on vessels suspected of drug trafficking. Trump has also suggested that the US military could soon conduct land operations on Venezuelan soil.
The standoff intensified further when US forces seized a sanctioned oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast on December 10, an act that Caracas labeled “international piracy.” Washington maintains that its actions are necessary to dismantle what it calls “illicit oil shipping networks” that fund “foreign terrorist organizations.”
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