Look at this: after selecting Juan Guaidó, the Trump administration imposed a series of sanctions on Venezuela/PDVSA. This sanctions regime instilled a sense of dread in numerous international energy players who ultimately withdrew from the scene. The goal was to eliminate Nicolás Maduro, but as established companies faced greater risks doing business with Venezuela/PDVSA, the gap was quickly filled by agile shell companies run by eager players looking to profit. A case in point: Libre Abordo, a small Mexican outfit with little track record, replaced Rosneft as PDVSA’s largest trading partner in under six months! Let me illustrate: from zero barrels of crude to over 26 million lifted. Just three days ago, Schlager Business Group (a subsidiary of Libre Abordo) was scheduled to lift 1.9 million barrels. Today, another million. Last week? Another 1.9 million barrels, and the week before that? 1.9 million… How could Libre Abordo have pulled that off, you ask? This is where Juan Guaidó comes into play.
We have Alex Saab, well-known to readers of this site as the key figure behind the Global Construction Fund. One of Saab’s side businesses is oil. He is part of a humanitarian oil-for-food program established between Libre Abordo and CORPOVEX. Libre Abordo brings in corn and water trucks. That’s the “humanitarian” part of the deal, or the part involving Libre Abordo. The other part is payment, of course, crude from PDVSA as payment collected by Schlager. What does Saab do with that crude? Sell it on the market.
We also have Alejandro Betancourt, recognized here as the main figure behind Derwick Associates. One of Betancourt’s side businesses is oil. He is involved in a joint venture with PDVSA (Petrozamora) that produces around 66,000 barrels/day. Sweden’s Nynas used to buy it all. Not anymore, again due to the sanctions. What will Betancourt do? Offload it on the market.
In summary, Guaidó’s family and network, along with López and Ramos Allup, are the individuals directly involved in helping Maduro evade the sanctions imposed by the Trump administration. Guaidó once served as the president of Venezuela’s Congressional Audit Commission and exonerated Mauro Libi, a thug close to Maduro’s regime. A congressman close to Guaidó, implicated in the theft of humanitarian aid, even exonerated Alex Saab and remained part of Guaidó’s entourage during his last visit to the U.S.!
It must be repeated, Guaidó and his associates ARE propping up Maduro, Guaidó and his associates ARE facilitating Maduro’s survival, providing critical services at a time when almost everyone has stopped dealing with chavismo. There is a saying for this in Spanish, “esto se cuenta y no se cree”: the man chosen by Trump is actively helping chavismo cling to power.
What consequences are there for those supporting Maduro? Let’s see: Saab has already been indicted and is a wanted fugitive, but that hasn’t stopped him from establishing Mexican shell companies and obtaining approvals from the Treasury. Betancourt has yet to be prosecuted, living in luxury between Madrid and London without any issues.
And what about Guaidó? What consequences have his failures had? The U.S. invested a significant amount of political capital in his platform, did he concoct “coups” in collaboration with Raúl Gorrín, Maikel Moreno, and Vladimir Padrino, along with Cliver Alcalá and Jordan Goudreau?
We have stated, and will reiterate, that Trump should condition further support along specific political lines or abandon Guaidó altogether.
Before leaving, Guaidó should aid the cause of freedom in Venezuela by informing federal agencies about the aforementioned activities involving his own family and network of associates. The same goes for Henry messing with Ramos Allup and Leopoldo López. Those who support Maduro must be held accountable. Immediately. It is inconceivable that helping and inciting chavista criminals appears to have no repercussions, not even in the jurisdiction whose government seeks greater punishment for those involved.
If sanctions are the chosen path, they must apply to all, regardless of who they are or where they are, irrespective of jurisdiction. If the Treasury dared to sanction Rosneft and Gazprom, it must do the same with their subsidiaries, Repsol, ENI, and Reliance, as well as with Mexican shells, secondary sanctions, or with the “entrepreneurs” engaged in polo games. The Treasury should update its SDN list with every crude extraction schedule from PDVSA, which this site is happy to provide. The Treasury should immediately add all of the aforementioned, plus consignees, shipowners, insurance companies, traders, banks, and every business and individual trafficking in the misery of Venezuela.
And then add a few more: GPB Energy Services and Boris Ivanov & co, Maroil Trading, Euro Shipping, Wilmer Ruperti, Guerric Canonica, Richeart International, D&N Boat Services, JHCP International, Paramount Glory Shipping and Fuel, Blackwell International Services, Asia Charm Ltd FZE, Grupo Jomadi, Proton Sociedad Limitada, Armando Capriles, Axel Capriles, and Oswaldo Cisneros.
The Trump administration must target each and every entity doing business with chavismo, as all business dealings with chavismo under the current circumstances are fundamentally corrupt.