NEW YORK (Reuters) – The U.S. special envoy for Venezuela, Elliott Abrams, said on Friday that the U.S. government talks frequently with Spain and oil major Repsol, which operates in the South American country.
The comments come after a U.S. official warned oil companies including Repsol who do business with Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA, which Washington sanctioned last year, to “tread carefully.”
“If the conditions, the sanctions, change, we will talk to Repsol,” Abrams said in Spanish during a press conference call.
Abrams said Repsol has not been and does not want to be infringing U.S. law or sanctions.
Repsol did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos in New York, additional reporting by Luc Cohen in Caracas)
