Trump announced Friday that the United States has reached an agreement with Venezuela that guarantees it majority control over more than 65 billion barrels of proven oil reserves of the South American nation. He has called the agreement historic, suggesting it would bring fuel prices down for Americans.
In a statement on social media, Trump wrote the accord was reached by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth with the cooperation of Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodriguez and private-sector partners.
“The United States of America has just entered into an Agreement with the Country of Venezuela on THE BIGGEST OIL DEAL IN WORLD HISTORY!” Trump wrote.
Trump believes the arrangement, which he said would more than double US oil reserves “at no cost to the American Taxpayer,” will result in cheaper gasoline, although the White House has not provided details such as which companies would have control and how it would work.
The agreement is seen as a bold plan to help resurrect Venezuela’s oil industry while also granting the United States further access to the world’s most prolific crude reserves. Venezuela’s confirmed oil reserves are 303 billion barrels, but decades of underinvestment and infrastructure decline have hampered its crude production.
According to Reuters, several questions still linger regarding the deal, from both its legal and financial aspects, and whether US companies will follow through with sufficient investment to increase output significantly.
