Venezuela has the right to independently develop mutually beneficial cooperation with other countries, said Lin Jian, spokesman for the Chinese ministry, at a press conference, quoted by Reuters. He added that the international community understands and supports Venezuela's position on protecting its legitimate rights and interests.
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On Saturday, US forces detained a tanker carrying Venezuelan crude oil in international waters off the coast of Venezuela. The authorities in Caracas announced they would file a complaint with the UN.
This was the second detention of a Venezuelan oil tanker by the US in December.
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Last week, US President Donald Trump announced a “blockade” of all sanctioned tankers entering and leaving Venezuela. Reuters reported that the Centuries tanker, loaded in Venezuela under the false name Crag, was carrying about 1.8 million barrels of local crude. The crude was intended for China and bought by Satau Tijana Oil Trading, one of the intermediaries involved in the sale of crude oil by Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA to independent Chinese refiners, the agency added.
A White House spokesman said the “false flag ship” was carrying sanctioned oil and was part of Venezuela's shadow fleet, i.e. ships used to transport oil bypassing sanctions imposed on Caracas. The Venezuelan government called the seizure of the tanker a “serious act of international piracy.”
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China is the largest buyer of Venezuelan crude oil, which accounts for about 4%. their import.
The United States accuses Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro of running a drug cartel and for several weeks has been attacking boats that – according to American services – are transporting drugs to the United States.
