Venezuela condemns US seizure of PDVSA aircraft as 'blatant theft'
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Venezuela has vowed to take all necessary measures to challenge the seizure and demand the immediate return of the aircraft.
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Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil speaks at a news conference in Caracas, Venezuela, on Feb. 20, 2024. (AP)
Venezuela has strongly denounced the seizure of a state-owned aircraft by the United States, calling it an outright act of theft. The Dassault Falcon 2000EX, which was stationed in the Dominican Republic, was seized on Thursday under allegations of violating US sanctions and export control laws.
“Venezuela denounces before the world the blatant theft of an aircraft belonging to the Venezuelan nation, carried out by order of the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio,” Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil declared.
Gil condemned Rubio’s actions, asserting that he “is nothing more than a criminal disguised as a politician, using his position to loot and strip the country of its assets.”
He further accused the US official of acting out of personal animosity, stating, “His hatred turns him into an international criminal, willing to violate any norm as long as it harms our homeland. Marco Rubio will go down in history for what he is: a thief and a declared enemy of our people.”
The big picture
Venezuela has vowed to take all necessary measures to challenge the seizure and demand the immediate return of the aircraft.
The seizure took place at La Isabela Airport in Santo Domingo, where Dominican authorities handed over the aircraft to Rubio. He justified the move by alleging that the plane was used to “evade U.S. sanctions and launder money.”
The Dassault Falcon 2000EX, acquired by PDVSA in 2017 from the US, had undergone multiple maintenance procedures using American-made parts—an act that Washington claims breaches its export control laws and sanctions.
This is the second Venezuelan aircraft seized by the US in five months. In September 2024, another Venezuelan plane, held in the Dominican Republic for maintenance, was seized and transferred to Florida, with US authorities alleging it had been illegally purchased for $13 million.
Last year in February, Maduro hit back at Argentinian President Javier Milei on February 16, 2024, three days after the United States fulfilled the seizure of a Venezuelan plane held in Buenos Aires since June 2022.
In a televised statement, Maduro said, referencing his counterpart, "They stole our plane... Milei the bandit stole the plane from Venezuela. Javier Milei, the hero of the extreme right," adding, "He acts crazy or he is crazy or both at the same time."
US authorities detained the Venezuelan cargo jet, claiming it formerly belonged to an Iranian airline purportedly associated with the Quds Force of the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps. Caracas condemned the decision, stating that the planes were transferred to the US covertly.
