US to impose 25% import tariff to any country buying Venezuela’s crude, gas

SAO PAULO (ICIS)–President Donald Trump said on Monday the US will impose 25% import tariffs, effective 2 April, to any country buying Venezuelan crude oil and gas.

As the US aims to increase financial pressure on the Venezuelan regime of Nicolas Maduro, Trump said that the tariffs made sense “for numerous reasons”, adding as one of them that Venezuela had “purposefully and deceitfully” sent “tens of thousands” of suspected criminals.

Many of them, he said, belong to the Tren de Aragua, a powerful criminal gang which has exponentially grown from Venezuela to several other Latin American countries.

Tren de Aragua has been designated now as a foreign terrorist organization.

“Among the gangs they [Venezuela’s regime] sent to the US is Tren de Aragua… We are in the process of returning them to Venezuela – it is a big task! In addition, Venezuela has been very hostile to the US and the freedoms which we espouse,” said Trump on a post on Truth Social, the social media network he owns.

“Therefore, any country that purchases oil and/or gas from Venezuela will be forced to pay a tariff of 25% to the US on any trade they do with our country. All documentation will be signed and registered, and the Tariff will take place on 2 April 2025.”

A TARIFF ON ALL, BY THE BACKDOOR
In a post on social media network X, formerly Twitter, the CEO of US logistics platform provider Flexport said the measure, if implemented as announced on Monday, could amount to an import tariff in practically all countries.

While Venezuela’s crude oil output has greatly diminished in the past two decades due to mismanagement and corruption, it had posted a recovery as of late, not least because of the US’s easing of sanctions under the previous administration.

That recovery, while still far from Venezuela’s crude oil and gas production peak, in output is currently sold and purchased and resold around the world, hence why Flexport’s CEO Ryan Petersen said the US could end up taxing all countries a 25% tariff.

“Almost every country buys some oil or gas from Venezuela, so this is effectively a 25% tariff on the whole world if it goes through,” said Petersen.

“The number one importer of Venezuelan oil is, of course, the US.”