On Thursday, at a raucous gathering of loyal supporters in Caracas, President Nicolas Maduro made official what the bond market had been anticipating for years: cash-strapped Venezuela is going to seek debt relief.

Blaming the financial sanctions imposed by the U.S. government—and its “lackeys” in the Venezuelan opposition who lobbied for such measures—Maduro said that a $1.1 billion principal payment on bonds from state-run oil company PDVSA that was due Thursday will be the last one made before the country begins negotiations with creditors.

“Venezuela has had to face a genuine financial blockade,” Maduro told the crowd in a fiery, speech broadcast on national television that lasted more than an hour.