Trump has ordered a ‘total and complete’ blockade of sanctioned oil tankers to and from the country
Trump in his Truth Social message didn’t have any detail on how a blockade on sanctioned oil tankers might be enforced, or if he would direct the Coast Guard to seize vessels like he did last week.
His administration has moved thousands of troops and nearly a dozen warships - including the world’s largest aircraft carrier - to the sea north of Venezuela in the past couple of weeks.
It’s clear the move targeting oil, Venezuela’s main source of income, is aimed at further squeezing Nicolas Maduro’s government.
Venezuela affirmed its sovereignty over all natural resources and its right to free navigation and trade in the Caribbean Sea despite “warmongering threats,” the government said in a statement on Tuesday. They condemned Trump’s “irrational military blockade” order as a “grotesque threat” aimed at “stealing” the country’s wealth.
