Venezuela's oil can't be sold? The White House once again seeks help from China, but with a tough condition!

Recently, Venezuela's oil exports have found themselves in an embarrassing situation — the price was forced up to $45, but no one wanted to buy it. The US military's action of kidnapping Maduro has made most international buyers hesitant.

Venezuela's crude oil is of poor quality, transportation costs are high, and the risks have not been fully resolved. Even when the price dropped as low as $31 per barrel, global buyers remained uninterested. The US itself also cannot consume so much heavy oil, and its refineries are not configured for it. As a result, inventory piled up and transactions stalled, worsening Venezuela's financial situation again.

Now the White House is a bit taken aback, so it once again turns its eyes toward China. For many years, China has been Venezuela's largest buyer of oil, and there is also a long-term arrangement between the two countries called "oil for loans" — China provides billions of dollars in credit, and Venezuela repays with stable oil supplies. This mechanism supported Venezuela's economy during the 2010s. Now, facing the sales dilemma, the US clearly realizes that to truly revitalize Venezuela's oil exports, it cannot bypass China.

But the US attitude is not simply about "cooperating," but rather "doing business" with conditions. A White House official who did not want to reveal his name recently clearly stated: It is acceptable for China to continue buying Venezuela's oil, but the price must not be "unfairly lower than the market level." In other words, it means: you can buy, but you must pay $45 per barrel or higher, and no more of those previous discounted selling methods.

The problem is, why should China listen to you, the US? The White House's "winking" at China at this moment actually shows that it itself understands: without China's participation, the so-called "opening up of exports" is just empty talk. However, the high price condition it has set reveals its contradictory mindset of wanting to solve the problem while not wanting to give up on making a big profit. But this time, the White House has really chosen the wrong party, and China is not Japan or South Korea.

Original: toutiao.com/article/1855258500177929/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author alone.