US Secretary of State and acting national security adviser Marco Rubio testified Wednesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on US policy toward Venezuela after the ouster of Nicolas Maduro.
In early January, the US military launched an extraordinary operation in Caracas, where it captured Venezuela’s president, before taking him to New York for a criminal trial. The first lady of Venezuela, Cilia Flores, was also kidnapped in the operation.
Rubio: ‘Prepared to use force’ but there is ‘good and decent progress’ in Venezuela
Since then, former Vice President Delcy Rodriguez has assumed the role of acting president of Venezuela.
“We will closely monitor the performance of the interim authorities as they cooperate with our stage-based plan to restore stability to Venezuela,” Rubio testified. “Make no mistake, as the president has stated, we are prepared to use force to ensure maximum cooperation if other methods fail.”
Target Venezuela: Drug war or US power grab?
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
At the same time, Rubio claimed there is “good and decent progress in Venezuela,” saying, “We are certainly better off today in Venezuela than we were four weeks ago.”
Rubio also said there will soon be a ramped-up US diplomatic presence in Venezuela and that steps are being taken to reopen the US Embassy in Caracas, which had closed in 2019. He said this will “allow us to have real-life information” and will boost US engagement with both the Venezuelan government and opposition.
Rubio said he will meet with Venezuelan opposition figure and Nobel Prize Laureate Maria Corina Machado after the Senate hearing.
Proceeds from Venezuelan oil sales will flow into US-controlled bank account
Rubio also described what will be done with the proceeds from the sale of Venezuelan oil. The Latin American country has the world’s largest oil reserves.
The US top diplomat said money generated from the sale of Venezuelan oil will be put into a bank account controlled by the US Treasury. He then said the Venezuelan government will “spend that money for the benefit of the Venezuelan people.”
US ‘takeover’ of Venezuela: Lessons for Africa and beyond
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
In regards to Venezuelan oil, Trump has previously said, “Venezuela is going to get some, and we’re going to get some.”
Both Venezuelan officials and US Democrats, such as Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut, have accused the Trump administration of attempting to steal Venezuela’s oil.
“The scope of the project that you are undertaking in Venezuela is without precedent,” Murphy told Rubio in the hearing
“You are holding and selling that oil, putting for now the recepts in an offshore bank account,” the Connecticut senator added, referencing a CNN report that oil sale proceeds are being sent to Qatar. “You’re deciding how and for what purposes that money is going to be used in a country of 30 million people. I think a lot of us believe that is destined for failure.”
Rubio also comments on Greenland, Iran
Rubio also discussed other Trump administration foreign policy priorities during the hearing, such as Greenland and Iran.
Trump has previously threatened a US takeover of Greenland, a territory of NATO ally Denmark. Trump’s takeover push has been roundly condemned by not only Danish and Greenlandic officials but also European leaders, such as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
“There’ll be some technical level meetings between us and our partners in Greenland and Denmark on this issue, and I think we have in place a process that’s going to bring us to a good outcome for everybody,” Rubio said.
Greenland: Trump forcing NATO to increase Arctic presence
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
The top US diplomat also discussed the protests in Iran against the Shia Islamist government. Trump is threatening Iran with military action if it does not agree to a new nuclear deal.
“That regime is probably weaker than it has ever been and the core problem they face — unlike the protests you saw in the past on some other topics — is that they don’t have a way to address the core complaints of the protests, which is that their economy is in collapse,” Rubio said.
Edited by: Sean Sinico
