MEXICO CITY--Mexico's foreign minister will travel to Jamaica, Grenada and Saint Lucia in March, a Mexican official said on Thursday, as part of efforts to erode Venezuela's oil-based influence in the Caribbean.
Meanwhile, Cuban diplomats will visit Mexico in March to discuss the regional impact of the crisis in Venezuela, the official said. The Cuban embassy in Mexico City said the trip was not yet confirmed but that the two countries have regular bilateral meetings. Still, there are no signs that Cuba, a steadfast ally of Caracas, is ready to turn its back on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Mexican Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray's planned trip follows a visit to Latin America and the Caribbean earlier this month by U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who announced plans to study how possible oil sanctions against Venezuela could be mitigated in the Caribbean. The Mexican foreign minister's trip represents the latest development in U.S.-led pressure on Maduro, who retains loyalty from some Caribbean nations that have long benefited from Caracas' oil largess and have been unwilling to shun the country in regional diplomatic efforts.
"The message is: Venezuela is not the only country that can help (Caribbean nations), that if there's a crisis in Venezuela, they have more friends," said the Mexican official, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the as-yet undisclosed trip.
In a statement, Mexico's foreign ministry said Videgaray was planning trips to the Caribbean. "The foreign ministry is eager for those trips to be arranged, and so possible dates are being sought," it said, adding that several Caribbean countries had invited the minister for work visits since last year.
The foreign ministries of Jamaica, Grenada and Saint Lucia could not be reached for comment.
Videgaray has led Mexico's efforts to try and improve cooperation with its top trade partner on security, immigration, and foreign policy, hoping to convince the United States to take a softer stance on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) that underpins the majority of Mexican exports. U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened to quit the pact if it cannot be improved to benefit U.S. workers.
On his way to Jamaica, Tillerson said the United States was closer to deciding whether to impose sanctions on Venezuelan oil, adding that Canada, Mexico and the United States were studying how to mitigate the impact of such a move. Restrictions on Venezuela's oil industry would represent an escalation of financial pressure on the OPEC member, which is gripped by severe shortages of food and medicine. Such sanctions could also hurt U.S. refineries that process Venezuelan oil.
