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UN rapporteur: US sanctions on Venezuela are ‘blunt’ way to engineer regime change, causing blanket starvation

US sanctions against Venezuela are like “going into microsurgery with a kitchen knife” and are holding an entire population hostage, the UN special rapporteur on the negative impact of unilateral coercive measures told The Grayzone.

by Michael Selby-Green

Part 2 - “If you block all their financial resources, how would they be fed?”

Jazairy is most critical of measures imposed by the United States against PDVSA on January 28, which bar American individuals and companies from making transactions with the state owned oil giant, and blocks its interests and property in the US. He said the measures are causing starvation.

Venezuela is heavily dependent on foreign imports of food and medicine which it often pays for through oil sales. These generate around 98 percent of the nations export earnings according to OPEC. By imposing sanctions on PDVSA, the largest company in Venezuela’s oil sector you’re starving the country, Jazairy said.

“If you block all their financial resources, how would they be fed? They’re already in a bad situation. Five million have left the country because they can’t find subsistence and now you’re going to make it worse by imposing these sanctions. As I say, it’s playing with fire,” he said.

He called it a “mad world” when the US “starves” people through sanctions and threatens force if US humanitarian aid is not allowed to be delivered.

“Would it not have made more sense to let the people survive in the first place rather than weaponizing humanitarianism after starving them to trigger civil war?” he said.

Since backing Juan Guaidó’s coup attempt against current President Nicolas Maduro, the US, EU, Canada and the UK have all imposed sanctions against Venezuela which are illegal under international law.

The UN official predicted a “terrible” situation around the corner and the possibility of “tremendous” violence if leaders don’t change course.

The US Treasury has not responded to a request for comment on Mr Jaziary’s allegations.

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