Interim President Delcy Rodriguez announced today that she has sent a letter to King Charles III, requesting the release of gold held at the Bank of England. "This gold belongs to the Venezuelan people," she said, "and we need it to address the earthquake's aftermath."
Late last month, a double earthquake struck Venezuela. It killed over 3,800 people, flattened residential areas, and left thousands homeless. This ranks among Latin America's most severe earthquake disasters. In La Guaira state, the hardest-hit region, families continue to search through rubble for relatives.
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Interim President Delcy Rodriguez at a press conference in Caracas on 2/7. Photo: AFP
The gold's current status dates back to early 2019. The British government and other nations backed Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido. He declared himself interim leader, accusing President Nicolas Maduro of election fraud in 2018. Guaido then asked the Bank of England to block the Venezuelan government's access to its gold reserves. The Central Bank of Venezuela sued the Bank of England, but it has not recovered the assets.
On 8/7, the United Nations issued an urgent appeal for nearly 300 million USD for six months of earthquake relief in Venezuela. Venezuelan officials, on the same day, called for the release of the nation's frozen assets to fund recovery. Foreign Minister Yvan Gil stated at a UN meeting: "We call on all nations holding frozen assets belonging to Venezuela to initiate a release plan for recovery efforts. State assets of Venezuela globally have been frozen due to illegal sanctions." The US government lifted some economic sanctions on Venezuela for four months to facilitate aid. The US has imposed economic sanctions on Venezuela since 2019, aiming to pressure President Maduro's government.
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Humanitarian aid collected at a facility in La Guaira state on 30/6. Photo: AFP
The UN estimates the earthquake caused 6,7 billion USD in damage, 6% of Venezuela's GDP. The international airport serving Caracas also sustained damage. It remains closed to commercial flights.
Huyen Le (AFP, Reuters)
