U.S. Blocking Airplane Sales to Venezuela

The U.S. has seemingly blocked two sales of military planes to Venezuela: one from Spain, and another from Brazil. In each case—turboprop trainers in the Brazilian case, and patrol planes in the Spanish case—the planes in question had U.S. military technology. As Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez complained this week:

We couldn’t sign the document. The contract is ready for Brazil to make Supertucano training aircraft for our air force. … The United States did not authorize Embraer to make the planes,” Chavez told officers at a military academy.

The U.S. is must authorize the sale of any airplane containing U.S. military technology, regardless as to whether that plane was built in the U.S. or overseas.

In and of itself, this is not of huge concern. It is merely one more story showing the deteriorating relationship between Washington and Caracas.

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UPDATE

Spain will go forward with the sale, substituting in EU-made parts for the U.S. tech.