Maduro Willing to Make Concessions to Trump, Offers to Hand Over Natural Resources 0 22

The Venezuelan leader intended to reduce tensions with the U.S. by opening the country's oil and gold projects to American companies.

The New York Times, citing its own sources, reported that Venezuelan authorities offered the Donald Trump administration access to their natural resources to avoid conflict and ease tensions.

According to the publication, Nicolás Maduro was prepared to grant American companies access to all existing and future oil and gold mining projects, as well as redirect oil trade from China to the U.S. and provide preferences to American businesses.

Venezuelan officials managed to agree on some economic concessions; however, they could not reach an agreement on political issues. As a result, the Trump administration rejected the proposal, and subsequent cessation of negotiations with the White House, according to sources, definitively ended attempts at a diplomatic resolution of the conflict.

At the same time, the U.S. continued to accuse Venezuelan authorities of insufficient efforts against drug trafficking. The U.S. Navy has already destroyed at least three boats in international waters of the Caribbean Sea with individuals suspected of transporting drugs from Venezuela.

Donald Trump, in his speech at the UN General Assembly, stated that American armed forces would continue operations against vessels linked to Venezuelan drug cartels. American media do not rule out that strikes could also be carried out against targets in Venezuela in the coming weeks.

Nicolás Maduro has repeatedly emphasized that the country is facing the most serious threat of invasion from the U.S. in a century.

The UN Security Council will soon convene to discuss the situation in Venezuela. In Oslo, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate was announced, and it was awarded to Venezuelan politician María Corina Machado. The risks of a direct military operation by the U.S. against Venezuela have increased recently. Against this backdrop, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro signed a strategic agreement with Russia in response to the escalation of the situation.