US President Donald Trump announced that the United States has concluded what he described as the largest oil deal in world history with Venezuela.
Writing on his Truth Social platform, Trump said key officials from both nations reached an agreement that grants Washington control over 65 billion barrels of crude oil without incurring any costs.
According to the American president, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and interim Venezuelan President Delcy Rodriguez agreed to the landmark terms.
Trump said the historic agreement more than doubles American oil reserves, significantly expands US petroleum supplies, and will substantially reduce gasoline prices for American consumers for years to come. He added that the deal will also assist Venezuela as the nation moves further along the path to major success and prosperity.
Terms of the proposed energy agreement
The announcement follows prior reports that Washington was preparing to sign an energy deal with Venezuela. Previous reports indicated that the United States could lease several oil fields in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela for a term of 100 years.
Financial news agency Bloomberg previously reported that a 100-year lease of state energy assets would mark an unprecedented intervention by the US government into the economy of another sovereign country.
Background on key figures and location
Venezuela is located on the northern coast of South America and possesses vast proven crude oil reserves, primarily situated in the Orinoco Belt. Delcy Rodriguez serves as the interim president of the South American nation, following high-level governance changes in the capital of Caracas.
The agreement was negotiated on the American side by Marco Rubio, who serves as the top diplomat in charge of the State Department, and Pete Hegseth, who leads the Department of Defense from the Pentagon. Truth Social is an online publishing platform owned by Trump Media and Technology Group, while Bloomberg News is a global business news network based in New York City.
