DORAL, Fla. – Florida’s governor spoke on Friday at a Doral church as photos of Joe Biden were projected behind him showing the U.S. president with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.
Ron DeSantis denounced the visit by Biden administration officials to Venezuela in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
“This Maduro regime is not a regime that you legitimize. It’s not a regime that you prop up,” DeSantis said.
It’s a meeting Lesly Simon of the Venezuelan-American Chamber of Commerce said felt like a betrayal.
“It should be an open meeting. If there’s something . . . it’s something that is hiding so we can’t understand what it’s behind all this,” Simon said.
A White House spokesperson told Local 10 News that the priority of the visit was to bring home detained Americans and that a range of issues was discussed, including the fight for democracy in Venezuela.
“Our first priority was bringing home Americans who have been detained in Venezuela. Thanks to the tireless work of our diplomats, we did exactly that. While that discussion happened on a separate track, there was also a discussion on a range of issues, including our approach in the Western Hemisphere and the fight for freedom and democracy for the Venezuelan people. Maduro has committed to participate in conversations with interim President Juan Guaidó. We are not currently talking to them about importing their oil,” according to the White House spokesperson.
“So you say you don’t want to deal with Putin because he’s a dictator, but then don’t turn around and go to Maduro,” DeSantis said.
The United States last imported oil from Venezuela in 2019. Former Venezuelan oil executive Juan Fernandez said beyond the political complexities of re-engaging with Maduro, he believes the country’s decimated oil industry is in no condition to viably crank out more crude.
“I think the United States doesn’t need that oil. There are options in the market. For example, there is Canadian oil in the market.” Federal data shows Canada as a major supplier of crude imports.
But there is a broader concern from Representative Carlos Gimenez about diplomatic talks between the two countries and that is Venezuela’s relationship to Russia.
“The closest ally to Russia in the region are both Cuba and Venezuela. Cuba doesn’t produce any oil; Venezuela does. You are legitimizing this illegitimate government,” Gimenez said.
Fernandez said that regardless of the politics, a deal with Venezuela isn’t likely viable from a business perspective.
Fernandez added that in his estimation it would take a lot of investment in Venezuelan’s oil sector in order for them to increase output. But, he added, that he does not think that the United States should assist with that effort until there’s a free Venezuela.
“It is very difficult for an investor to go to Venezuela. There is no rule of law in Venezuela. I don’t see Venezuela again, under the current conditions to be an option,” said Fernandez.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) tells Local 10 News at about 2.2 billion barrels in 2021, crude oil imports are currently at the second-lowest level of imports in this century (2020 was the least). In 2005, U.S. Crude imports hit their all-time high of about 3.7 billion barrels. “Our imports have come down fairly consistently since then” an EIA spokesperson explained, with exceptions of increases in 2017 and 2018.