Venezuelan VP warns of possible U.S. disruption in global energy landscape

CARACAS, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela has been under military threat from the U.S. government and any attack on the country with the world's largest oil reserves would have serious consequences for global energy landscape, Vice President Delcy Rodriguez said Wednesday.

Addressing the Russian Energy Week International Forum via videoconference, Rodriguez said, "energy is at the center of global geopolitics," accusing Washington of "aggression against major oil-producing countries."

"For the past eight weeks, we have seen a military threat from the U.S. government, which pursues a single fundamental goal: to seize Venezuela's oil, gas and vast reserves," Rodriguez told the audience.

She noted that 26 percent of global oil production and 43 percent of global reserves are subject to illegal sanctions or unilateral coercive measures. She questioned how investment in such countries could be maintained and how future energy demand would be met.

Venezuela has denounced on various international occasions the deployment of U.S. military vessels in the Caribbean Sea and threats against Venezuela by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. ■