Venezuela released two jailed US citizens on Tuesday in an apparent goodwill gesture toward the Biden administration following a visit to Caracas by a high-level US delegation.
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One of the freed prisoners was Gustavo Cardenas, among six Citgo oil executives arrested in 2017 and convicted on charges the US government says were fabricated. The other was a Cuban American, identified as Jorge Alberto Fernandez, detained on unrelated charges.
The weekend visit by the US delegation focused not only on the fate of detained Americans but on the possibility of easing US oil sanctions on the OPEC member to fill a supply gap if US President Joe Biden banned Russian oil imports in response to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine – something he did on Tuesday. Venezuela is Russia's closest ally in South America.
Washington has sought the release of at least nine men, including those known as the "Citgo 6," two former Green Berets and a former US Marine.
