‘Expropriation’ not in government’s dictionary

Ricardo Sanguino, the head of Venezuela’s national assembly finance commission, has confirmed that the government will negotiate settlements with the companies that it plans to nationalise, including former telecoms monopoly CANTV. Sanguino said that the companies affected would be compensated and that shareholders’ rights would be respected, adding that ‘confiscation and expropriation are banned words in our dictionary. We will be tough but fair negotiators. There are legal mechanisms in the constitution that lend support to our [nationalisation] plan.’ In the current political climate, US telco Verizon’s deal to sell its 28.5% stake in CANTV to Mexican sister companies America Mòvil and Telmex is looking increasingly unlikely to be completed.