Venezuela’s government is promising to replenish oil supply to its close political ally Cuba as part of a broad push to relaunch its PetroCaribe regional oil supply initiative. Senior Venezuelan and Cuban government officials met in Caracas yesterday to discuss ways to neutralize escalating US sanctions on the two countries. The sanctions are aimed at removing Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, whom the White House accuses Havana of propping up. Venezuela and Cuba “will recover PetroCaribe during the first half of this year,” Maduro said. He invited regional members to “support the planning and execution” of PetroCaribe’s revival “to recover the sovereignty, independence and development of our Caribbean countries.” PetroCaribe was created in 2005 by Maduro’s late predecessor Hugo Chavez to promote regional economic development by supplying subsidized oil to around 16 Caribbean and Central American countries. Venezuelan supply to PetroCaribe members such as Nicaragua, Jamaica, Dominican Republic, Haiti and […]