Why the Venezuela Crisis Won’t (Seriously) Affect China’s Oil Supply

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro (R) shakes hands with China's President Xi Jinping during a signing-of-agreements ceremony, in Caracas on July 21, 2014. On the last day of his two-day visit to Venezuela, Xi signed agreements that will tie his energy-hungry country to the South American oil-rich state. AFP PHOTO/LEO RAMIREZ (Photo by LEO RAMIREZ / AFP)

In the wake of the Trump administration’s incursion into Venezuela and its stated plan to seize the country’s oil output, the focus has swung to China’s historical role as a major buyer of Venezuelan oil.

Venezuela was an early testing ground for Chinese resource-backed lending, with about $100 billion in financing promises agreed on in the early 2000s.

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