So we will just attempt to make it through it and I will https://pbase.com/topics/sionna93gp/tonlhie877 attempt to monitor it. All eyes are on Venezuela today, and Venezuela's effect on the Caribbean countries from energy to trade and other things are very concerning, specifically Eastern Caribbean nations. So, I guess the concern that I have is, all 6 countries of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States are members of the Bolivarian Alliance referred to as ALBA, which includes efforts to promote regional cooperation and reduce hardship; so to what extent have ALBA and Petrocaribe increased Venezuela's influence in the Caribbean? I think I can respond to 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 is in collapse. Financially, some are stating it is no longer a democracy. It is a nation that has serious and enduring internal problems which it is going to take years to get beyond. Therefore, the relationship that Venezuela has developed with a number of nations of the Caribbean in great times has actually ended up being stretched, due to the fact that the largesse that Venezuela has had the ability to honestly distribute or to provide a concessionary on concessionary terms has actually been much constrained in the present environment.

I think what I would state is in the current environment, due to the fact that of the problems that Venezuela is having and honestly since of the opportunities that we have in the United States through the whole transformation of energy that we have actually seen in our own nation over the last numerous years, we have a chance to come into the Caribbean as a partner and state, look, you understand the programs and the activities that you may have been doing with Venezuela are no longer appropriate and we can offer the exact same things that you need without the political or without the ideological overhang that you may have had formerly - How old of an rv can you finance.

Duncan. Let me ask you something about that. Is there enough trust of the United States for us to enter that space with those countries? I don't know the response to that. Mr. Farnsworth. Well, I think in the present environment we require to do some groundwork. We need to do some spade work. I imply, look, Petrocaribe was a very successful program and we understand why. I imply, it was timely, it offered something that the leaders required when they needed it. It was symbolic. It was really, really simple to explain to individuals. I mean, we are getting oil from Venezuela.

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It was on one concern. And I think sometimes, when the United States engages with the countries of the Caribbean, we have a great deal of well implying programs and wonderful concepts, but they are diluted, right? Not deluded, but watered down in regards to the effort and the focus. Under Petrocaribe, it was one product easily discussed, highly symbolic, and people stated Venezuela's our buddy - What are the two ways government can finance a budget deficit?. And I think what we require to do much better from the United States' viewpoint is to build that level of trust through an ongoing sustained engagement with the area so that people can say, look, we do trust you. What was the reconstruction finance corporation.

Mr. Duncan. I personally believe energy is a terrific chance for us, no doubt about that. Let me look into cash laundering and terrorism funding a little bit. There is a huge push by the U.S. to have U.S. banks sever relationship with Caribbean-based banking institutions. Does that policy work to decrease cash laundering and chances for terrorist companies to access the monetary system? And that is most likely to Sally. Ms. Yearwood. In a lot of ways it does the opposite, since when U.S. banks move out of the area what you have produced in reality is a void which becomes filled by other institutions.

So, what is being created is a scenario where there is more opportunity for terrorist funding or something to fail and somebody to make use of that void. So I would say that the U.S. banks absolutely need to be a key and vital player in the local money system. Mr. Duncan. I am probably less concerned, and possibly I should not be, however less concerned about terrorism funding through the Caribbean banks as I have to do with cash laundering. Which of these arguments might be used by someone who supports strict campaign finance laws?. We simply saw in Panama, a substantial $800 million cash laundering plan, realty participation, substantial variety of employees involved in a genuine company-- still a money laundering scheme.

Ms. Yearwood. Part of the issue is the understanding of threat versus the truth of the threat. Banks are not leaving the Caribbean due to the fact that there is money laundering. Banks are leaving the Caribbean since the expenses of compliance are overwhelmingly stacked versus the banking system. You have small jurisdictions and for every account that you are dealing with you need to put a substantial quantity of cash into making sure that the cost of-- that business is tidy. However what we have to do in impact is produce a system where the regulators, the banks, everyone is working together, information is being shared, and when details is passed between the regulators and the Treasury or the regulators and the banks, individuals know where deep spaces are.

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And the issue in The original source the Caribbean is that the economies are small, putting these systems in place costs a lot, but all the Caribbean will tell you that they satisfy the compliance regulations. And so there is a detach in between what is in fact taking place and what people are saying is occurring. I believe among the typical complaints is the breakdown between what is going on in offshore monetary services and what is going on in banking. And the Panama Papers were extremely mainly linked to the overseas monetary services industry versus the reporter banking and de-risking issue that is presently being faced.

Mr. Duncan. I am assuming that the Federal Federal government is keeping track of-- in Panama Documents an individual is never ever implicated because and begin moving funds around, in potentially, the Caribbean country. I am assuming our Treasury and FBI are keeping an eye on that, I would presume. So I am going to go on and yield to the ranking member. Mr. Sires. One of the factors that I supported, or I still support the export of energy from this country is to offset the impact of Venezuela since generally they were utilizing it for political purpose. You know, if you look at the votes they took at the U.N.

So View website now Venezuela is in difficulty. I think their production is something like 40, half less, and there is a void there that we can assist fill and, you know, we can actually help in terms of simply having a little bit more influence on people. The other thing that frets 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 an existence there. So I was just wondering how much of a competitive disadvantage this puts us when we do not have, truly, a presence in the Eastern Caribbean.