Brazilian leader accuses U.S. of economic imperialism in Venezuela, citing oil control and privatization parallels to Brazil’s 2014 scandal.

A Brazilian labor leader, Deyvid Bacelar, accused the U.S. of using pressure on Venezuela to seize control of its oil resources and weaken its state oil company, PDVSA, arguing the real motive is economic imperialism, not democracy or anti-drug efforts. He compared this to Brazil’s 2014 Operation Car Wash, which he said enabled foreign, especially American, firms to secure over half of the 100 billion barrels of pre-salt oil auctioned, and extended to broader privatizations like Eletrobras, undermining national industries and sovereignty. Bacelar warned that defending Venezuela’s oil sovereignty is key to protecting Latin America’s autonomy.