President Donald Trump said Tuesday he was ordering a “total and complete blockade” of sanctioned oil tankers coming to and leaving from Venezuela, ratcheting up pressure against leader Nicolás Maduro’s regime and suggesting an economic motive to the US’ military campaign in the region.
Punctuating the words “total and complete blockade” in capital letters in a Truth Social post, Trump pointed to the large collection of US military assets in the region, suggested more could be coming and took aim at Maduro’s regime by name. He also suggested Venezuela give up land, oil and assets to the United States, making clear that one aim of his military campaign is not just about countering the drug trade.
“Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America. It will only get bigger, and the shock to them will be like nothing they have ever seen before — Until such time as they return to the United States of America all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us,” Trump said Tuesday night.
Combined with Trump’s threat of land strikes on Venezuelan soil, the move ratcheted up pressure on Caracas by going after its economic lifeline, which had already come under strain after new sanctions on the oil sector earlier this year and last week’s seizure of a tanker full of Venezuelan oil.
Venezuela slammed the announcement in a Tuesday statement, calling it “a reckless and serious threat.”
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