U.S. licenses Venezuelan gold trade, barring Russia, Iran, North Korea and Cuba

The U.S. issued a license Friday authorizing dealings with Minerven, Venezuela’s state-owned gold mining company, as Interior Secretary Doug Burgum concluded a visit to Caracas where he met with acting President Delcy Rodríguez and representatives of more than two dozen American mining and minerals companies, the Associated Press reported.

The license marks the latest in a series of U.S. actions to assert economic control over Venezuela’s natural resources since U.S. forces captured then-President Nicolás Maduro roughly two months ago, while explicitly barring rival nations from benefiting from Venezuela’s critical-mineral wealth.

The U.S. issued a license Friday authorizing American companies to conduct dealings with Minerven, Venezuela’s state-owned gold mining company, barring participation by entities from Russia, Iran, North Korea and Cuba, the Associated Press reported.

The action followed Interior Secretary Doug Burgum’s visit to Venezuela this week, during which he met with acting President Delcy Rodríguez and representatives of more than two dozen American mining and minerals companies — many of which previously operated in the country. Burgum said Venezuela’s government gave security assurances to mining companies interested in investing there.

Security has long been a concern in Venezuela’s mineral-rich interior, where guerrilla members, gangs and other illegal groups have reportedly controlled much of the territory.

Rival nations barred; China the backdrop

The exclusion of Russia, Iran, North Korea and Cuba from any contracts with Minerven reflects the administration’s stated objective of defending against China’s hold on critical minerals, some of which are abundant in Venezuela. China does not appear on the exclusion list, but American officials have identified Beijing’s dominance in global critical-mineral supply chains as a central driver of the policy.

Part of a broader resource push

The gold-sector license is the latest in a series of moves by the Trump administration to shape Venezuela’s economic opening since U.S. forces captured then-President Nicolás Maduro approximately two months ago. Delcy Rodríguez, who has served as acting president since Maduro’s detention, signed a law in January opening Venezuela’s oil sector to privatization.

On the petroleum side, the U.S. has also moved to take legal ownership of a sanctioned tanker and nearly 2 million barrels of petroleum seized off the Venezuelan coast in December, according to the AP.