China has accused the US of “bullying” Venezuela, after Donald Trump ordered a “total and complete” blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela.
In a phone call on Wednesday, China’s foreign minister Wang Yi told his Venezuelan counterpart, Yvan Gil, that Beijing supported Caracas in defending its sovereignty.
Mr Wang labelled Washington’s military presence in the area – which includes the USS Gerald R Ford aircraft carrier and its support group – as “unilateral bullying”.
“China believes the international community understands and supports Venezuela‘s position in defending its legitimate rights and interests,” Mr Wang said.
The message of support came as the US president declared late on Tuesday that he had ordered the “blockade” on oil tankers into and out of the South American country.
He said the US military would remain in place until Venezuela returns “all of the oil, land, and other assets that they previously stole from us”.
In the social media post following months of escalating tensions in the Caribbean, Mr Trump said Venezuela was surrounded by the “largest armada ever assembled in the history of South America”.
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“It will only get bigger, and the shock to them will be like nothing they have ever seen before – until such time as they return to the United States of America all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us,” he said.
The US military seized a Venezuelan oil tanker on 11 December, in an escalation of the crisis involving the country that is rich in fossil fuels.
Mr Trump’s campaign has included more than two dozen strikes on boats in the both the Caribbean and the Pacific that the US says were trafficking drugs, killing at least 90 people.
Mr Trump has repeatedly accused Caracas of using boats to smuggle drugs into the US, defending American actions as being in the interest of national security.
The US has released no evidence to support its assertions that those killed in the boats were “narco-terrorists”, as the administration has called them.
Venezuela’s government has accused Mr Trump of “violating international law, free trade, and the principle of free navigation” with “a reckless and grave threat” against the South American country.
Washington has announced sanctions on numerous oil tankers, shipping companies and family members of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
“The illegitimate Maduro Regime is using oil from these stolen oil fields to finance themselves, drug terrorism, human trafficking, murder, and kidnapping,” Mr Trump said.
The statement seemed to confirm Mr Trump’s goal was to remove Mr Maduro from power and likely replace him with a friendlier regime.
Mr Maduro has been in power since 2013, and was re-elected in 2024 in a contest marred by accusations of fraud.
He has accused Mr Trump of seeking to overthrow him after the US president approved CIA operations in the South American country.
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Mr Trump doubled the reward offered for the arrest of Mr Maduro to $50m (£37.2m) in August.
In October, Mr Trump appeared to confirm reports that Mr Maduro had offered a stake in Venezuela’s oil and other mineral wealth to ease mounting pressure from the United States.
“He’s offered everything,” Mr Trump said at the time. “You know why? Because he doesn’t want to f*** around with the United States.”
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Mr Trump has said the US will move its campaign against Venezuela beyond the water and start strikes on land.
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Venezuela has the world’s largest proven oil reserves and produces about one million barrels a day. It has relied on oil revenue to support its economy.
Since the Trump administration began imposing oil sanctions on Venezuela in 2017, Mr Maduro’s government has relied on a shadowy fleet of unflagged tankers to smuggle crude into global supply chains.
