Share

Venezuela sends 17 000 troops to seal Colombia border

San Cristobal - Venezuela said on Monday it has deployed 17 000 troops along the Colombian border to combat gasoline smuggling, as it prepared to seal the frontier nightly to stanch multi-billion-dollar annual losses.

Oil-rich Venezuela has some of the world's cheapest gasoline, as well as price controls that can make food and commodities up to 10 times less expensive than in Colombia.

That has led to an outward flood of contraband and officials have vowed to crack down, starting on Monday by closing the border at night from 22:00 to 05:00.

"We have 17 000 troops deployed along the entire border zone and they are enough to guarantee security," said the commander of the operation, General Vladimir Padrino Lopez.

Venezuela announced on Saturday that it would begin sealing the 2 200km border at night.

Private vehicles will be barred from crossing after 22:00, and commercial trucks after 18:00.

Padrino, who was speaking to journalists in the border state of Tachira, said officials would test the operation for 30 days and then evaluate the results.

The Venezuelan government estimates that 40% of the country's basic commodities are smuggled across the border with Colombia, plus 100 000 barrels of oil, equivalent to annual losses of $3.7bn.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Do you think corruption-accused National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will survive a motion of no confidence against her?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
No, her days are numbered
42% - 394 votes
Yes, the ANC caucus will protect her
58% - 545 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.94
-0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.91
-0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.43
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.34
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.2%
Platinum
910.50
+1.5%
Palladium
1,011.50
+1.0%
Gold
2,221.35
+1.2%
Silver
24.87
+0.9%
Brent Crude
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
68,346
+1.0%
All Share
74,536
+0.8%
Resource 10
57,251
+2.8%
Industrial 25
103,936
+0.6%
Financial 15
16,502
-0.1%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE