Venezuela Decides Against Admitting More Deportation Planes as U.S. Intensifies Economic Embargoes
Caracas, March 9, 2025 (our website) - The Venezuelan government has drawn a line under more deportation flights from the US following a recent escalation of coercive measures against the Caribbean nation.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the Maduro administration has privately warned the Trump administration that it won't cooperate on new repatriations after the US Treasury Department rescinded a license allowing Chevron to operate in Venezuela.
Caracas has kept quiet on the issue, with the Journal citing people familiar with the matter.
Venezuela has taken back three groups of returnees following a high-profile meeting with White House Special Envoy Richard Grenell. The flights shipped nationals back from Texas, Guantanamo (via Honduras), and Mexico. Authorities remained cagey about whether the Mexican families had been booted out of the US to Mexico or failed to cross the border.
The Trump administration has prioritized a crackdown on migrants since taking office, with particular focus on Venezuelans. The Department of Homeland Security has revoked Temporary Protective Status (TPS) for Venezuelan migrants, leaving as many as 600,000 at risk of forced removal.
Venezuela's reluctance to engage with the US on deportations follows Washington's recent withdrawal of General License 41, which allowed Chevron to run crude extraction and export operations in its Venezuela joint ventures. The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has issued General License 41A, which sets a 30-day period for the oil giant to wrap up its activities in the South American nation.
The move contrasted with the White House's early policy of engagement with Caracas. Reports suggest the administration tightened its economic screws on Venezuela as a concession to foreign policy hardliners ahead of a crucial budget vote.
Florida Representatives Mario Diaz-Balart, Carlos Gimenez, and Maria Elvira Salazar provided crucial votes for the narrowly approved budget. Although they also opposed the cancellation of TPS, which affected their constituencies, the Cuban-descent politicians concentrated their lobbying efforts on tougher sanctions against Venezuela.
The removal of General License 41 undid the Biden administration's only significant departure from the "maximum pressure" sanctions policy put in place during Trump's first term. The Biden White House issued General License 44 in October 2023, allowing Venezuela to export crude without slapping on heavy discounts or relying on unreliable intermediaries. However, extensive restrictions were reintroduced after six months.
The US has targeted Venezuela’s oil sector in recent years to choke its primary revenue source. US Treasury coercive measures have included financial sanctions, an export embargo, and secondary sanctions.
Chevron owns minority stakes in four joint projects that currently pump an estimated 200,000 barrels per day (bpd), just under a quarter of the industry's output. Analysts predict its looming exit will hurt the Venezuelan government's spending power and potentially spark inflation.
Since booting out Chevron, US officials have granted similar 30-day wind-down periods to French corporation Maurel & Prom and the US' Global Oil Terminals. The latter conglomerate, owned by magnate Harry Sargeant III, had secured a significant asphalt import deal until 2026.
European companies Eni (Italy) and Repsol (Spain), which have ramped up their activities in Venezuela following US Treasury approval, are expected to vacate in the coming weeks as well. Indian refining giant Reliance Industries got the green light to import Venezuelan crude, but it's unclear if the arrangement was open-ended or had an expiration date.
Venezuela's deals with international partners also gave state oil company PDVSA access to essential diluents and light crude required to produce export blends and fuel. The recent sanctions ramp-up could lead to gasoline and diesel shortages.
For its part, the Maduro government criticized the Chevron sanctions waiver withdrawal as "damaging and inexplicable" and accused its US counterpart of succumbing to pressure from Venezuela's hardline opposition.
Venezuelan authorities activated an "Absolute Productive Independence" plan to safeguard the stability of the energy sector. Maduro vowed that the oil sector would continue its upward trend despite tightening coercive measures.
Deportations of Venezuelans under the Trump administration’s hardened stance on immigration have stirred controversy and humanitarian concern. For instance, Venezuelans deported to El Salvador were reportedly locked up without trial or due process, generating widespread protests from Venezuelan communities against these policies that criminalize innocent migrants through association with criminal groups[4]. Legal challenges emerged in the US, with the ACLU filing lawsuits to protect Venezuelan migrants from immediate removal and exposing issues like insufficient notice and violation of due process rights[1].
In response to these aggressive deportations, the Venezuelan government views these tactics as unjust and discriminatory. The labeling of Venezuelan migrants as enemies, the conditions into which they were deported, including indefinite detention without trial, have led Caracas to reject further deportation flights[1][3][4].
- The Venezuelan government has taken a firm stance against further deportation flights from the US, following the withdrawal of a license allowing Chevron to operate in Venezuela.
- The Maduro administration has privately expressed their unwillingness to cooperate on new repatriations after the US Treasury Department rescinded a license for Chevron's crude extraction and export operations in Venezuela.
- Venezuela's reluctance to engage with the US on deportations has been influenced by the Trump administration's harder policy on immigration, particularly toward Venezuelans, which has included revoking Temporary Protective Status (TPS) for Venezuelan migrants.
- The closure of Chevron's operations in Venezuela, along with similar wind-down periods for other international companies, is expected to have a substantial impact on Venezuela's government spending power and potentially lead to inflation.
- The Venezuelan government criticized the withdrawal of Chevron's sanctions waiver as "damaging and inexplicable," accusing the US of succumbing to pressure from Venezuela's hardline opposition, and labeling the tactics as unjust and discriminatory against Venezuelan migrants.
