BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Sunday that the U.S. is still considering restricting the sale of oil from crisis-torn Venezuela. Tillerson said in Argentina’s capital that the U.S. wants “free, fair, and verifiable elections” in Venezuela, and wants to apply enough pressure to end the crisis in the South American country. But Tillerson also said that he wants to find ways to mitigate the negative effect sanctions would have on U.S. oil companies, Venezuelans and other regional countries that rely on Venezuelan oil. The U.S. oil industry says that a ban on petroleum imports from Venezuela would hurt U.S. jobs and drive up gasoline costs. “We’re always closely following the situation in Venezuela, which has now drifted toward a health and humanitarian crisis of extraordinary proportions,” Faurie said.

Source: National Post February 04, 2018 20:26 UTC