Venezuelan National Assembly Repudiates the US-Backed Theft of CITGO
Debate in the Venezuelan National Assembly, June 18, 2024. Photo: X/ @Asamblea_Ven
June 19, 2024 Hour: 8:00 am
‘The CITGO refinery was a highly coveted prize by those who hold real power: the United States,’ Rodriguez stated.
On Tuesday, Jorge Rodriguez, the president of Venezuela’s National Assembly, described the judicial sale of CITGO shares as a “robbery.”
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“Hundreds of millions of dollars have been taken from CITGO for them to live like kings today. They stole CITGO using the guise of seizure and handed it over. It’s a blatant robbery,” he said.
“Those who claim to be defenders of the economy built one scam on top of another to seize an asset of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. The CITGO refinery was a highly coveted prize by those who hold real power: the United States,” Rodriguez emphasized.
On Tuesday, he participated in a parliamentary debate about the illegal dispossession of the Venezuelan company CITGO by the U.S. government. He accused far-right politicians of asking Washington to auction CITGO shares privately to avoid affecting their electoral interests. So far, offers have already been received at prices much lower than the actual value of the Venezuelan Petroleum (PDVSA) subsidiary.
“They are so shameless that those who stole from you are the same ones asking for your vote today,” Rodriguez said, referring to U.S.-backed opposition politicians such as Juan Guaido, Leopoldo Lopez, and Julio Borges.
“Imagine if the opposition manages to place their puppet in the presidency! We run the real risk of being left without a country!” the President of the National Assembly stressed, summarizing the anti-patriotic behavior of the Venezuelan far-right.
“After stealing CITGO, the opposition asks citizens for their vote. That is barbaric, repulsive, and unpatriotic. They wash their hands and play dumb,” he commented, highlighting the importance of the July presidential elections for the defense of Venezuelans’ well-being.
“Next July 28, with the vote of the people, we are going to overthrow them. And they deserve that for being stateless, lackeys, and thieves,” Rodriguez said, referring to the expected electoral defeat of the far-right candidates.
Currently, U.S. authorities are implementing a sale of CITGO shares to supposedly pay its debts. This PDVSA subsidiary is at risk of being seized as a group of creditors have seizure orders that could be executed if the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) authorizes it.
In January 2019, the Trump administration handed control of CITGO to the Venezuelan far-right opposition. That happened at a time when this oil company was valued at US$12 billion and had three refineries, six pipelines, and about 4.200 service stations across the United States.
Since then, CITGO has remained under the control of a board of shareholders that does not respond to the decisions made by PDVSA or the Venezuelan state, a situation that contradicts the most basic principles of international private and public law.
Source: VTV
teleSUR/ JF
