Description: The US Department of Treasury and its Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) lifted all existing sanctions on interim Venezuelan president Delcy Rodriguez, further signaling diplomatic and economic reconciliation between the US and Venezuela. Rodriguez praised the decision and stated that both countries have a lot of common ground for cooperation to explore. The US embassy in Caracas was reopened on 30 Mar, while companies like Shell are also speculated to have engaged in negotiations to restart operations in Venezuela. Previously, Rodriguez was also speculated to have vied for changing the board of directors at PDVSA’s US subsidiary, Citgo, which hasn’t been under Venezuelan control for over 7 years. China heavily criticized the US for monopolizing the Venezuelan national economy through issuing general business licenses which exclude countries such as China, Russia, North Korea and Iran from economically operating within Venezuela.
Impact: The lifting of US sanctions on the interim Venezuelan president, strengthens and legitimizes her position while also expediting closer economic cooperation between the two countries especially in regard to oil extraction and mining. The US through the move reinforces its influence and position with the current Venezuelan administration while also aiming to counteract other adversarial foreign interests, especially from China. The reopening of the embassy further confirms that the Trump administration considers Rodriguez as a long – term partner in Venezuela for forwarding the regional interests of the US. China’s reaction arrives naturally due to Beijing’s longstanding relationship with the former president Maduro, which could potentially instigate an internal economic covert war between the US and China in the mid to long – term. Venezuela is still far away from stabilization as much of its current administration stands accused of civil rights violations and plunging the country into a wide economic crisis.