Maracaibo, Venezuela – The government of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has denounced that the United Kingdom intends to “steal” several tons of gold from the reserves of that South American country in a ruling to be issued soon.
Delcy Rodriguez, Venezuela’s executive vice president, announced this Friday during an action for pro-Maduro social movements that the UK’s Supreme Court “intends to steal Venezuelans’ gold” in an imminent ruling over an already drawn-out litigation for control of the Bank of England’s estimated $1,950 million gold reserves.
Rodriguez, one of the closest collaborators of the Venezuelan head of state, announced that in the next few days the English courts will determine the “destination” of negotiations on this gold. According to his arguments, the so-called interim government of opposition leader Juan Guaido aspires to control these reserves in order to “protect” the country’s assets abroad from Chavismo.
Rodriguez confirmed on Friday that previous decisions on that lawsuit are part of an act of “historic hacking” by the Bank of England.
“All countries must think that what they have done to Venezuela they can do to them too, and realize, and do not take their gold to the Bank of England, do not put it in custody, because in the end they will end up being the victims of a historical piracy of this country intending to steal gold Venezuelans and Venezuelans.”
The official emphasized that lawyers and central bank delegates linked to Maduro were “fighting” to regain control of the reserves.
Venezuela is fighting for the Venezuelans’ gold. Will it allow the UK government, mired in deep crisis, to steal the gold of all Venezuelans? That’s why BCV exists, fight. But we have to fight here, on the street, ”as the Chavista fighters called.
Long process, new victory
In December, the UK’s Supreme Court ruled in favor of recognizing Guaido as interim president of Venezuela and for the special direction of Maduro’s dissident central bank in the case.
Five judges of the highest English court decided unanimously to “accept” the statements of the British government chancellor, which recognized Guaido as the legitimate president of Venezuela for three years.
According to the file, which recalls the political origin of the dispute, the gold of about 1950 million dollars is held in two banks based in England.
The Supreme Court determined that “about $1,000 million of Venezuela’s international reserves” were held in the Bank of England and a similar amount with Deutsche Bank.
Judges confirmed eight months ago that it would be the English Commerce Court that would determine whether rulings by Venezuela’s Supreme Court of Justice, which justices of the peace usually issue rulings in favor of Maduro and which recognizes the central bank linked to Chavista’s leader, “should be recognized”.
Guaido’s interim government announced on Friday that it had achieved a “new victory” in the case. A decision by the English High Court on Thursday ordered the authorities of the Madurista Central Bank to compensate opposition officials BCV 400,000 pounds, or about 480,000 dollars, paid to Chavismo’s lawyers in 2020.
“He was ordered to pay the costs (fees and expenses of the operation) for the facts and procedures of the second instance and those carried out before the Supreme Court of Justice itself, the value of which will be estimated in the coming days, and which may exceed one million dollars,” according to the opposition institution.
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