Nicolas Maduro, the Socialist president of recession-hit and hyperinflation-stifled Venezuela, was the most vocal supporter and promoter of an OPEC deal to reduce oil supply in a bid to lift prices. The cartel – against all odds, as Phil Collins would say – managed to reach that much-hyped and much-coveted deal last week. And no one appeared more desperate for the deal than Venezuela. Maduro rejoiced and praised the OPEC agreement as “a victory for the Bolivarian Peace Diplomacy”. And crude oil prices have jumped by around 15 percent since the deal was sealed on November 30.