New York, Feb. 25 (Xinhua) — The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced on Wednesday that it will allow the resale of Venezuelan-origin crude to Cuba's non-governmental sectors, according to an update published by the office. OFAC indicated that it will implement a 'favorable licensing policy' for specific applications seeking authorization to resell Venezuelan oil to Cuba. The measure covers transactions that include exports for commercial and humanitarian use in Cuba, as well as other operations aimed at the Cuban private sector, OFAC specified. However, the office clarified that transactions involving or benefiting any person or entity linked to the Cuban military, intelligence services, or other government institutions will be excluded from this policy. The United States had previously designated Cuba as an 'unusual and extraordinary threat' to national security and announced measures to prevent the island from receiving Venezuelan oil following a military operation in January that sought by force to oust then-Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. After that incursion, Washington confiscated Venezuelan oil exports, Argentina's news agency reported. On Jan. 29, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order threatening to impose tariffs on goods from countries that supply oil to Cuba.
