Venezuelan Gold Repatriation Plan Under US Control Sparks Colonialism Concerns

The prospect of US control over Venezuela’s sovereign assets would amount to a “colonial relationship” and set a “terrible precedent” for Latin America, former IMF Executive Director Paulo Nogueira Batista Jr. has told RT.

Reports have surfaced that some 31 tons of Venezuelan gold – valued at approximately $4 billion and held at the Bank of England – could be released to fund reconstruction following earthquakes in June, but potentially placed under US Treasury control.

The bullion has been inaccessible since 2018, when the Bank of England stopped recognizing the Venezuelan government and froze the country’s reserves. However, following weeks of US-backed negotiations, the Venezuelan government and opposition recently reached a rare agreement to jointly seek repatriation of the assets.

To overcome legal hurdles, they proposed converting the gold into funds to be deposited into US Treasury accounts rather than transferred to Venezuela, with spending subject to independent international audits.

The US Treasury had earlier issued a limited license allowing certain disaster-relief transactions involving Venezuela, which remains under US sanctions.

Since the January 3 US operation that captured former President Nicolas Maduro, Washington has taken control of Venezuelan export revenues, particularly proceeds from oil sales. Caracas’ access to the funds is subject to US decisions.