G7 says OPEC-member Venezuela missed an opportunity by Daniel J. Graeber Washington (UPI) May 23, 2018 An OPEC member in part behind a spike in crude oil prices causing economic concern, Venezuela missed a chance by re-electing President Maduro, G7 leaders said. The leader of the Group of Seven powers -- Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States -- issued a unified statement rejecting the results of a weekend election that secured another six-year term for Nicolas Maduro. "The Venezuelan government has missed the opportunity for an urgently needed political rectification," the joint statement read. Presidential elections during the weekend were widely characterized as illegitimate. By moving elections forward, Maduro worked to disarm the opposition. A year ago, the U.S. Treasury Department characterized Maduro as "a dictator" and, on Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump signed executive action that put further pressure on his regime. Trump's order prohibited "the purchase of any debt owed to the government of Venezuela" or debt owed to Caracas. Any reference to the government in the executive order includes Petroleos de Venezuela, the state oil company known commonly as PDVSA. Before the election, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that instead of reforming, Maduro was trying to get around existing sanctions by using a digital currency and tightened the sanctions noose further as a result. Undeterred, the state oil company, PDVSA said through its official Twitter account that Maduro has continued to support the cryptocurrency. The only Latin American country in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, Venezuela's oil production is at historic lows because of sanctions pressure and mismanagement. Coupled with U.S. sanctions pressure on Iran, one of OPEC's top producers, crude oil prices may be approaching the point of economic concern. In response to concerns about global energy security, the International Energy Agency said it was ready to act should the market situation warrant an extraordinary response. IEA members have been called on in the past to release emergency oil stockpiles to offset shortages.
British Columbia sues Alberta in escalating Canada pipeline row Ottawa (AFP) May 22, 2018 Canada's westernmost province sued its neighbour on Tuesday to try to stop it from turning off oil and gas taps in an escalating row over a proposed pipeline expansion. British Columbia filed a statement of claim in Alberta's Court of Queen's Bench seeking an injunction and damages should the latter move to throttle energy shipments. At the same time, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley bowed out of a meeting of regional leaders in protest. The two provinces have been at loggerheads for months ove ... read more
|
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |