So we will simply try to survive it and I will attempt to monitor it. All eyes are on Venezuela right now, and Venezuela's impact on the Caribbean countries from energy to trade and other things are really concerning, especially Eastern Caribbean countries. So, I think the concern that I have is, all six countries of the Company of Eastern Caribbean States are members of the Bolivarian Alliance referred to as ALBA, which includes efforts to promote regional cooperation and ease poverty; so to what degree have ALBA and Petrocaribe increased Venezuela's impact in the Caribbean? I believe I can address that question greatly.
Mr. Farnsworth. Mr. Chairman, thank you. And I agree it is the pregnant concern if you will of the area. Venezuela is a nation that remains in collapse. Financially, some are stating it is no longer a democracy. It is a country that has extreme and lasting internal issues which it is going to take years to get beyond. And so, the relationship that Venezuela has actually established with a variety of nations of the Caribbean in good times has actually become stretched, due to the fact that the largesse that Venezuela has actually had the ability to honestly hand out or to supply a concessionary on concessionary terms has actually been https://a.8b.com/ much constrained in the current environment.
I guess what I would say is in the present environment, since of the problems that Venezuela is having and frankly due to the fact that of the chances that we have in the United States through the whole revolution of energy that we have seen in our own nation over the last a number of years, we have a chance to come into the Caribbean as a partner and say, look, you understand the programs and the activities that you may have been making with Venezuela are no longer pertinent and we can supply the very same things that you need without the political or without the ideological overhang that you might have had previously - Which of the following approaches is most suitable for auditing the finance and investment cycle?.
Duncan. Let me ask you something about that. Exists enough trust of the United States for us to enter that void with those countries? I don't understand the answer to that. Mr. Farnsworth. Well, I think in the present environment we require to do some foundation. We require to do some spade work. I imply, look, Petrocaribe was a very successful program and we comprehend why. I indicate, it was prompt, it provided something that the leaders required when they needed it. It was symbolic. It was very, extremely easy to explain to people. I suggest, we are getting oil from Venezuela.
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It was on one concern. And I think in some cases, when the United States engages with the countries of the Caribbean, we have a lot of well meaning programs and terrific concepts, however they are diluted, right? Not misguided, but watered down in terms of the effort and the focus. Under Petrocaribe, it was one product easily described, highly symbolic, and individuals stated Venezuela's our pal - What do you need to finance a car. And I think what we require to do better from the United States' perspective is to construct that level of trust through an ongoing continual engagement with the area so that individuals can say, look, we do trust you. What was the reconstruction finance corporation.
Mr. Duncan. I personally think energy is a great opportunity for us, no doubt about that. Let me explore money laundering and terrorism funding a little bit. There is a big push by the U.S. to have U.S. banks sever relationship with Caribbean-based banking organizations. Does that policy work to minimize cash laundering and chances for terrorist companies to access the monetary system? Which is most likely to Sally. Ms. Yearwood. In a lot of ways it does the opposite, because once U.S. banks move out of the region what you have actually created in fact is a void which becomes filled by other institutions.
So, what is being produced is a circumstance where there is more opportunity for terrorist funding or something to fail and someone to make use of that space. So I would state that the U.S. banks definitely need to be a key and important player in the regional money system. Mr. Duncan. I am probably less concerned, and possibly I should not be, but less concerned about terrorism financing through the Caribbean banks as I am about cash laundering. How to finance an engagement ring. We simply saw in Panama, a huge $800 million money laundering scheme, real estate participation, huge number of workers associated with a genuine company-- still a money laundering plan.
Ms. Yearwood. Part of the concern is the understanding of threat versus the truth of the threat. Banks are not leaving the Caribbean because there is money laundering. Banks are leaving the Caribbean because the expenses of compliance are extremely stacked against the banking system. You have little jurisdictions and for every single account that you are dealing with you have to put a big amount of money into making sure that the expense of-- that the organizations is tidy. However what we need to do in result is develop a system where the regulators, the banks, everybody is working together, details is being shared, and walking away from timeshare maintenance fees when details is passed in between the regulators and the Treasury or the regulators and the banks, individuals understand where the voids are.
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And the issue in the Caribbean is that the economies are small, putting these systems in place costs a lot, however all the Caribbean will inform you that they satisfy the compliance policies. Therefore there is a disconnect in between what is really happening and what people are stating is happening. I believe one of the common problems is the breakdown in between what is going on in offshore financial services and what is going on in banking. And the Panama Documents were very mainly connected to the offshore monetary services industry versus the correspondent banking and de-risking concern that is currently being dealt with.
Mr. Duncan. I am assuming that the Federal Government is keeping can i rent out my timeshare an eye on-- in Panama Documents an individual is never linked because and begin moving monetary resources around, in perhaps, the Caribbean country. I am assuming our Treasury and FBI are keeping track of that, I would presume. So I am going to go ahead and yield to the ranking member. Mr. Sires. Among the factors that I supported, or I still support the export of energy from this nation is to offset the impact of Venezuela because generally they were utilizing it for political function. You know, if you take a look at the votes they took at the U.N.
So now Venezuela remains in trouble. I think their production is something like 40, 50 percent less, and there is a space there that we can assist fill and, you understand, we can actually assist in regards to simply having a little bit more affect on people. The other thing that stresses me is that on the eastern part of the Caribbean. Generally, we have an Embassy in Barbados and it serves all those islands there. Meanwhile, you have Venezuela, Cuba, Brazil, they all have a presence there. So I was simply questioning how much of a competitive disadvantage this puts us when we don't have, actually, a presence in the Eastern Caribbean.