The increasing number of murders and kidnappings in the South American nation of Venezuela has prompted the Department of State to issue a new travel warning for U.S. citizens who are in, or may be traveling to the country.
The State Department said the problems in Venezuela are serious enough to require U.S. direct-hire personnel and their families assigned to the embassy in Caracas to have limited and sometimes no access to certain parts of the city and other parts of the country.
State Department officials also said all direct-hire personnel and their family members at the embassy in Caracas will be required to take an armored vehicle when they travel to and from the Maiquetia Airport as well as other parts of the country.
The State Department said that Caracas has one of the highest homicide rates in the world at 134 murders per 100,000 inhabitants. In addition, the U.S. said kidnappings, drug trafficking, smuggling, and border violence are ongoing along Venezuela’s western border with Colombia.
The problems in Venezuela may continue to deteriorate as the price of oil continues to plummet around the world. Venezuela’s economy is dependent on the export of foreign oil. Bloomberg.com reports that the country “relies on oil for 95 percent of its export revenue.”
The Venezuelan economy has seen its probability of default skyrocket to 93 percent as oil prices drop, according to Bloomberg. Credit Suisse told Bloomberg that Venezuela will need oil to average $97 per barrel to meet its debt obligations through 2038.
