Venezuela Rejects US Supreme Decision on CITGO

On Tuesday, the Venezuelan state rejected that the U.S. Supreme Court has accepted that ten creditors participate in the distribution of profits from the auction of the shares of CITGO, the U.S.-based subsidiary of the state-owned Petroleum of Venezuela (PDVSA).

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"This decision constitutes an additional step in the multiform aggression that U.S. institutions are carrying out against Venezuela with the purpose of plundering the Venezuelan people of the assets that belong to them, in clear transgression of the norms governing peaceful coexistence between States,” points out a statement posted by Communications Minister Freddy Ñañez.

"This ruling confirms the serious damage caused to the Venezuelan people's interests and assets by the criminal action of the organized crime group calling itself 'the 2015 National Assembly', which has sought to usurp the Republic's institutions and representation abroad since 2019," it added.

"With this action they have prevented the legitimate authorities from exercising the necessary actions for the effective protection of CITGO within the United States territory, flagrantly violating the agreements signed in Barbados," the statement highlighted.

"Venezuela will continue to adopt all political, diplomatic and legal measures at its disposal to prevent the consummation of the definitive dispossession of the CITGO company, while continuing to demand that the Venezuelan justice system establish the corresponding sanctions against those responsible of the theft of this asset of great importance for the present and future of Venezuelans," it added.

In January 2019, the Donald Trump administration handed over to the Venezuelan far-right opposition control of CITGO, a company valued at US$12 billion that has three refineries, six oil pipelines, and some 4,200 service stations in the United States.

Until now, it was the Canadian company Crystallex and the U.S. company ConocoPhillips that had acquired rights to the share auction.

The recent ruling opens the door for companies such as Siemens Energy, Rusoro Mining, O-I Glass or Huntington Ingalls to participate in the distribution of auction profits.