US Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused China of profiting from Venezuela’s long-running economic collapse by securing discounted oil, telling senators that removing Nicolas Maduro was necessary to end energy arrangements that he said “favoured Beijing at the expense of the Venezuelan people”.
During a hearing of the US Senate Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday, Rubio portrayed China as a central beneficiary of the Maduro government, arguing that Beijing had taken advantage of sanctions and economic isolation to secure access to heavily discounted crude while expanding its influence in the western hemisphere.
“China was receiving oil at about a US$20 a barrel discount, and they weren’t even paying money for it,” Rubio said.
“It was being used to pay down debt that they were owed. This is the oil of the people of Venezuela, and it was being given to the Chinese as barter at a US$20 discount per barrel in some cases.”
Oil that should have supported domestic recovery, he argued, was instead diverted to service debts to China through opaque arrangements.
Chinese refiners were able to obtain supplies at prices unavailable elsewhere, Rubio told senators, while Venezuela’s economy continued to deteriorate.
In his account, the system was one of the main reasons Washington concluded that Maduro could not remain in power if the country were to regain stability.
The hearing marked Rubio’s first appearance before the Senate since a US-led operation earlier this year abducted Maduro in Caracas.
Despite warnings from committee chairman Republican James Risch of Idaho that disruptions could lead to the suspension of future hearings for one to three years, the secretary was briefly interrupted early in his speech by a protester holding a sign reading “Hands Off Venezuela”.
It wouldn’t be the only contentious reaction to the former senator’s presence at the committee where he held a seat for 14 years representing the state of Florida.
Throughout the hearing, Rubio was repeatedly confronted by Democrats over the State Department’s lack of transparency, while most Republicans defended their fellow party member’s handling of Washington’s foreign relations.
Lawmakers question legal basis of US Venezuela operation
The administration has described the actions in Venezuela as a law enforcement operation, though it followed months of military planning and coincided with an expanded US naval presence in the Caribbean.
But lawmakers pressed Rubio on the legal basis for the operation and its broader implications, while he repeatedly framed the action as part of a wider effort to prevent rival powers from entrenching themselves in the region.
China was repeatedly grouped with Russia and Iran as countries Rubio said had gained influence in Venezuela under Maduro, adding that the South American nation was allowing “three of our primary opponents in the world operating from our hemisphere – from that spot”.
That argument echoed a series of steps taken by the administration over the past year, as Washington steadily escalated pressure on the Maduro government.
Washington expanded maritime operations in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific, publicly framing them as counter narcotics missions while increasingly linking them to efforts to disrupt sanctioned oil shipments.
In December, Rubio announced what he called a quarantine on Venezuelan crude, saying a substantial share of exports was being routed to China through opaque arrangements that, according to him, stripped the Venezuelan state of revenue and oversight.
At Wednesday’s hearing, the secretary said none of the developments now under way in Venezuela would have been possible had Maduro remained in office.
“The release of political prisoners, the transition of the oil industry to a legitimate oil industry, the erosion of Iranian, Russian or Chinese influence, none of these things would have been possible as long as Maduro was there.”
He also pointed to international reactions to the operation, arguing that criticism came largely from actors who had benefited from the previous system.
“Look at the people who criticised it: China, Russia, Iran, Hamas. These are the people that were upset about the strike and this raid and what we did.”
While rejecting the suggestion that the US was at war with Venezuela, Rubio described the western hemisphere as a region where Washington could not tolerate rival powers establishing bases of operation.
“This is the western hemisphere. This is where we live, and we’re not going to allow the western hemisphere to be a base of operation for adversaries, competitors and rivals of the United States.”
Senators also questioned Rubio about whether the operation in Venezuela had broader implications for other confrontations with Beijing, including the situation around Taiwan.
Rubio said China’s objectives in the Indo-Pacific were shaped by long-standing goals that predated events in Venezuela and were driven by Beijing’s strategic priorities rather than developments in Latin America.
Despite recent declarations from Maduro’s vice-president, Delcy Rodriguez, who said on Tuesday that she was “tired of receiving orders from the US”, Rubio asserted that interim authorities in Caracas had expressed a willingness to cooperate with Washington officials, including on reshaping economic relationships and increasing transparency.
“So far, [every time] you identify an area you want to work with, they say yes, and we’re making progress on all of them. We’ve faced no impediments to date.”
Questions over Nato, allies and China’s global influence
Democrats pressed Rubio about recent US actions alienating US allies in Europe and the Indo-Pacific and creating room for China to expand its influence.
Jeanne Shaheen, US senator and ranking member of the foreign relations committee, pointed to maps alleging that China currently has ambassadors in many more countries than the US does, and that the US is “leaving embassies without leadership” and “driving talent away from the US while Beijing is actively recruiting it”.
Shaheen questioned whether Trump’s “fussy message” over Nato had antagonised US allies and partners, and that the only people excited about that are Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Senator Chris Coons said that US attempts to “coerce” Denmark into giving up Greenland are “appalling”, and “profoundly harmed” US security.
The US also needs allies to keep it safe in the Indo-Pacific against China, the US’ “principle threat”, and now the “foundations of trust are being shaken”, he said.
Rubio tried to reassure the senators that the US position in Europe will continue to function and that the administration’s recent “adjustments” were aimed at strengthening its allies in other parts of the world, which will in turn benefit Nato.
“I would say that I think our alliances in Nato ultimately are something that’s going to work out,” Rubio said.
“Nato is going to be stronger if our allies are more capable ... That’s not an abandonment in Nato. That is a reality of the 21st century and the world,” he said.
“As I speak to you now, 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 also argued that China’s influence in the western hemisphere has already “eroded” over the past year, citing Panama’s withdrawal from China’s Belt and Road Initiative, and new leaders in Chile and Honduras with “a strong desire to realign” with the US.
Still, China is “very interested” in telecommunications, “building and controlling” key infrastructure and critical mineral rights, and has secured many leases for many years because of “neglect” on the US part, according to Rubio.
“It’s given them leverage and a presence in many of these countries,” he said. -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
