US Won't Subsidize Venezuela Oil Recovery, After Decades of US Sanctions
In news that would be darkly comedic if it weren't so transparent, Bloomberg reports US oil companies are 'very interested' in revitalizing Venezuela's oil sector, but the US won't 'subsidize' their efforts. This comes after years of crippling US sanctions—imposed, of course, for 'democracy' and 'human rights'—that specifically targeted Venezuela's oil industry, collapsing production from 3.2
million barrels a day in 1999 to under 700,000 today. The same sanctions that devastated the Venezuelan economy and fueled a humanitarian crisis now apparently paved the way for 'revitalization.' How convenient. One might wonder if the US expects a medal for not subsidizing the cleanup of a mess it actively orchestrated. It appears 'free markets' are only free until they threaten US geopolitical
interests, at which point sanctions become the preferred economic tool. When the opportunity arises to profit from the aftermath, however, suddenly there's a stampede back to the trough—just don't ask Uncle Sam to pay for the broken windows he threw rocks through. This isn't foreign policy; it's a protection racket with extra steps.