Watchdog questions millions spent each year on shuttered US Embassy in Venezuela
The U.S. government employs a sizable staff of 150 Venezuelans and spends upward of $6.7 million annually for upkeep of the shuttered American embassy and other diplomatic properties in Caracas, despite having broken relations with President Nicolás Maduro’s government in 2019. That’s according to a new report published Friday by the State Department’s Office of Inspector General. It criticizes U.S. officials for never conducting a cost-benefit analysis to determine whether U.S. taxpayers should continue footing the bill for operations inside the South American country. The first Trump administration broke ties with Maduro in a failed attempt to force the socialist leader from power. The State Department in March 2019 suspended operations at its embassy.