It has been reported that the Donald Trump administration in the United States is pushing for a major deal to secure a stake in Venezuela’s oil fields, the world’s largest oil-producing country.
The U.S. media outlet Axios reported on the 27th local time, citing senior U.S. government officials, that the governments of both countries are negotiating the acquisition of stakes in a key oil field. Since ousting former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro last January, the Trump administration has been focusing on rebuilding the local oil industry. If this deal goes through, U.S. oil inventories are expected to more than double. A U.S. government official told Axios, “It is not enough to simply say this contract is ‘big’,” adding, “It is truly enormous in scale.” This negotiation is being pursued amid a situation where the global crude oil supply chain is being disrupted and international oil prices are fluctuating due to the prolonged Middle East war and the prolonged war in Ukraine.
At present, the United States’ strategic petroleum reserve has fallen to its lowest level in 40 years. The negotiation target is about ten of the core oil fields with the highest productivity out of Venezuela’s total reserves of 300 billion barrels, and they are known to have been assets controlled by key close aides of past administrations or Chinese capital. It is expected that Venezuela could increase its oil sales revenue by attracting investment from private oil companies, including the United States, in exchange for transferring its oil shareholdings. The negotiations are being led by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and interim Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez Benevúella. The working-level officials of both countries met in Caracas last month to discuss the detailed terms. However, internal criticism within Venezuela over the sale of its natural resources at a bargain price is cited as a variable. In response, a U.S. official said, “We are making every possible effort to show how much help this deal will be to the Venezuelan people.” With the final settlement date still undecided, Axios said that U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright is considering a visit to Venezuela next week to discuss ways to increase oil production. Reporter Jang Yeon-je (jang.).yeonje@jtbc.co.kr)
The United States is not hiding its ambition.
You may be coveting every country that is geographically close.
We should not be relieved just because we are far away.
