The official account of the U.S. Department of State in Spanish on the social network X, @USAenEspanol, amplified an opinion piece published in Fox News this Wednesday, asserting that the oil pact between Washington and Venezuela could "finally crush the communist grip" in Cuba and the region.
The text was written by Yuri Pérez, director of Latin American Studies at the Foundation for the Memory of the Victims of Communism, based in Washington, and a guest opinion columnist for Fox News.
Pérez is of Cuban origin and was a student activist advocating for democracy on the island before emigrating to the United States.
The government account reproduced the central argument of the article with the following message: "FOX NEWS: President Trump's and Secretary Rubio's strong oil pact with Venezuela could finally crush communist dominance."
In his column, Pérez argues that for more than a quarter of a century, Venezuela was not just a poorly governed state, but one "captured by the Cuban communist intelligence services," where Russian weapons were entrenched and Chinese loans stripped the country of its sovereignty, while the Chávez regime plundered the economy and filled the prisons with political prisoners.
The columnist argues that Venezuelan oil has financed Cuba, Russia, and China for decades, and that the agreement negotiated by Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio represents a historic opportunity to cut off the flow of resources that has sustained the Cuban dictatorship.
The pact referenced in the article was announced by Trump on August 28 via Truth Social, and confirmed by the interim president of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez. Trump described it as "the largest oil agreement in history."
According to journalistic reports, the agreement involves a private joint venture with 55% U.S. participation in the effective production over 17 strategic Venezuelan oil fields, which encompass about 65 billion barrels of proven reserves, with concessions of up to 100 years.
Venezuela would receive estimated revenues of over 209 billion dollars and private investment exceeding 100 billion dollars. The official text of the agreement has not been published.
The amplification of the article by the government account @USAenEspanol gives a semi-official character to that narrative, making it part of Washington's diplomatic message to the Spanish-speaking region.
This movement is part of a strategy that the Trump administration has been implementing since the beginning of the year.
In January, Trump conditioned any oil agreement with Venezuela on Caracas severing its ties with Cuba, China, Russia, and Iran, and announced that the island would stop receiving Venezuelan crude and funds, which worsened the already critical energy situation in Cuba.
Rubio, for his part, has denied that there is a petroleum blockade against Cuba, arguing that the Cuban regime received Venezuelan crude oil for free and resold part of it without the population benefiting.
The Vice President JD Vance stated that the United States is already seeing a significant increase in Venezuelan oil production following the signing of the agreement, which suggests that its implementation is progressing rapidly.
The post from @USAenEspanol generated mixed reactions among Spanish-speaking users, with some questioning the reliability of the Chavista regime as a partner, while others called for the public clarification of the terms of the agreement before making a definitive judgment.
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