Venezuela’s Maduro open to talks with US on drugs and oil, but silent on CIA strike

Venezuela is open to negotiating an agreement with the United States to combat drug trafficking, the South American country’s President Nicolas Maduro said in a pretaped interview aired Thursday on state television, but he declined to comment on a CIA-led strike last week at a Venezuelan docking area that the Trump administration believed was used by cartels.

Maduro, in an interview with Spanish journalist Ignacio Ramonet, reiterated that the US wanted to force a government change in Venezuela and gain access to its vast oil reserves through the months-long pressure campaign that began with a massive military deployment to the Caribbean Sea in August.

“What are they seeking? It is clear that they seek to impose themselves through threats, intimidation and force,” Maduro said, later adding that it is time for both nations to “start talking seriously, with data in hand”.

“The US government knows, because we’ve told many of their spokespeople, that if they want to seriously discuss an agreement to combat drug trafficking, we’re ready,” he said. “If they want oil, Venezuela is ready for US investment, like with Chevron, whenever they want it, wherever they want it and however they want it.”

Chevron Corp is the only major oil company exporting Venezuelan crude to the US. Venezuela has the world’s largest proven oil reserves.