Venezuela and the U. S. face a tricky legal battle over frozen assets

Two sides of Venezuela’s government—its socialist leaders and the opposition—might team up to protect the country’s money in the U. S. after a recent surprise move by Washington. A judge in New York paused for six weeks a case where creditors want to grab cash tied to Venezuela’s state oil company, PDVSA. Both sides asked for the break so they can figure out who should speak for Venezuela in court. The fight started when the U. S. government suddenly recognized Delcy Rodriguez, a top official in Venezuela’s socialist system, as the country’s leader. That decision came after the U. S. captured Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela’s former president. Rodriguez now plans to take charge of PDVSA’s U. S. branches, including Citgo, a big oil refiner based in Houston.Creditors aren’t waiting around. Some hold old debt from PDVSA, others lost businesses when Venezuela took their assets, and a few blame the government for violence. They’ve already sued to seize money linked to Citgo. The pause gives both sides a chance to pick one lawyer to handle Venezuela’s defense by late May. Behind the scenes, the opposition and the socialist government rarely agree. In fact, the opposition has controlled Citgo since 2019, when the U. S. banned PDVSA to push Maduro out of power. Now, with Rodriguez in the spotlight, the two sides might have to work together—or risk losing even more control over Venezuela’s U. S. cash.