FILE PHOTO: U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson speaks during a news conference in Bogota, Colombia February 6, 2018. REUTERS/Jaime Saldarriaga
February 7, 2018
KINGSTON (Reuters) – The United States, Mexico and Canada are already studying how to mitigate the impact on the Caribbean and oil refiners if the U.S. decides to sanction Venezuelan oil, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Wednesday.
Speaking en route between Colombia and Jamaica, his final stop on a tour of Latin America, Tillerson said any action taken against Venezuelan oil would affect Caribbean countries, many of which have long enjoyed subsidized fuel from the South American nation.
U.S. Gulf Coast refiners would also be affected, Tillerson said.
In Buenos Aires last week, Tillerson said the United States was considering restricting imports of Venezuelan crude oil and exports of U.S. refined products to Venezuela to put pressure on socialist President Nicolas Maduro to “return to the constitution.”
(Reporting by Gabriel Stargardter, Editing by Rosalba O’Brien)
