Trump says major US oil firms to begin drilling in Venezuela 'very soon'

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump said that major US oil companies are preparing to begin drilling operations in Venezuelan territory ‘very soon,’ signaling a significant expansion of American energy involvement in the South American nation’s oil sector.

Trump spoke to reporters aboard Air Force One on Thursday, January 22, about the plan as negotiations with energy firms continue.

On January 9, Trump held a meeting at the White House with top executives from the oil industry, accompanied by Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Progress on talks with energy sector

While talking to reporters on Air Force One, Trump said, “We’re going to start drilling very soon. We have the biggest companies in the world. We have them, and they’re going to come in. They’re all negotiating right now.”

He emphasized that talks with the energy sector giants are at an advanced stage and that the agreement represents a strategic opportunity for both Caracas and Washington.

“They will receive more money than they have ever received, but we will also receive a lot of money,” he said, talking about the economic benefits that both nations could obtain from this collaboration.

"We're really good at this," he said, making it clear that the United States is positioning itself as a key player in the reactivation of Venezuela's oil sector.

This comes in after Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, said the country has already pulled in $300 million from its first oil deal with the United States, an initial shipment of 50 million barrels.

It’s the first wave of cash coming in from a bigger energy agreement between Washington and Caracas.

Trump praises Venezuelan leadership

In a separate exchange during the same interview, Trump addressed questions about Venezuela’s political leadership and ongoing cooperation.

“Right now they’re very strong leadership. I mean, they’re showing very strong leadership,” Trump said when asked about Venezuela’s current leadership.

“Venezuela is going to do better than they’ve ever done,” Trump said. “Even with us taking a very fair piece of it, Venezuela will do better by far than they’ve ever done.”

In a separate portion of the same interview, Trump was asked about his engagement with Venezuelan political figures, including Maria Machado.

“We have a very good relationship. Just to say, she’s a good woman, a very nice woman. She’s been through a lot,” Trump said.

“And we’re moving, you know, to the United States millions of barrels of oil as we speak,” added Trump.

Trump also answered questions about the future of Venezuela and its elections, where all he said was, “I want to see how they do.”

While talking about the benefits of drilling oil in Venezuela, he said, “It’s going to make the United States a lot of money, and it’s also going to make Venezuela a lot of money. But it’s also going to bring down oil prices even further.”