Trump announces Venezuela to turn over 30 to 50M barrels of sanctioned oil to the US

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday, January 6, that the interim authorities in Venezuela will turn over between 30 and 50 million barrels of high-quality, sanctioned oil to the United States.

Trump said in a Truth Social post that the oil will be sold at market price and that the proceeds will be controlled by the president of the United States.

Trump says Venezuela oil headed to US docks

Trump wrote in a Truth Social post, “I am pleased to announce that the Interim Authorities in Venezuela will be turning over between 30 and 50 MILLION barrels of High Quality, Sanctioned Oil, to the United States of America."

“This Oil will be sold at its Market Price, and that money will be controlled by me, as President of the United States of America, to ensure it is used to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States!,” the POTUS added. Trump also said, “I have asked Energy Secretary Chris Wright to execute this plan, immediately. It will be taken by storage ships, and brought directly to unloading docks in the United States. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

On Sunday, January 4, the POTUS revealed that he informed oil companies ahead of the US military strike that removed Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, the president admitted that he gave major oil companies a heads-up about the operation while Congress received no notice. Trump acknowledged that he informed oil companies before the strike took place and praised them for wanting to “go in” and “do a great job” securing Venezuela’s vast oil reserves, the largest proven reserves in the world.

Trump says US is going to 'keep the oil'

During a conversation with 'Morning Joe' host Joe Scarborough on Monday, January 5, Donald Trump discussed the strike in Venezuela and how it differed from the invasion of Iraq under former President George Bush.

Scarborough later said that Trump spent much of the conversation praising the US military’s flawless execution of the strike and argued that it would send a message of strength to America’s enemies.

However, when asked about comparisons between Venezuela and Iraq, Trump said the United States was going to “keep the oil,” unlike during Bush’s presidency. The MSNBC host questioned how the aftermath of the Venezuelan strike would differ from the Iraq war under George Bush’s term.

Trump responded by saying that the key difference was that “Bush didn’t keep the oil,” adding, “We’re going to keep the oil.”

Trump also noted that he made similar comments in 2016, which sparked controversy at the time. He doubled down on the claim, saying the US would rebuild Venezuela’s broken-down oil facilities and keep the oil.