The United States has declared its intention to retain control over Venezuela’s oil industry indefinitely without specifying a timeline for its oversight of the country. Energy Secretary Chris Wright emphasized that the U.S. plans to continue managing Venezuela’s oil production and sales for an extended period.
During a Goldman Sachs energy conference near Miami, Mr. Wright stated that the U.S. will oversee the selling of Venezuela’s oil output in the global market. This statement followed President Donald Trump’s announcement that Venezuela would transfer millions of barrels of oil to the United States soon.
The White House is arranging a meeting with American oil company executives to address Venezuela, which the Trump administration has been urging to open up its struggling oil sector to U.S. investment. Executives from Exxon, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips are expected to participate in the meeting.
Reports from Caracas revealed that 24 Venezuelan security officers lost their lives in a clandestine U.S. military operation to capture President Nicolás Maduro and transport him to face drug charges in the United States.
In response to President Trump’s warnings, Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, resisted pressure to align the country with U.S. interests, particularly in granting access to American energy firms.
Simultaneously, the U.S. intercepted a Venezuela-affiliated oil tanker in British waters. The vessel, previously known as Bella-1 and now named Marinera, was boarded by U.S. forces as it navigated through the North Atlantic between Iceland and Scotland, eluding Trump’s naval blockade of Venezuela.
American law enforcement officials, supported by the U.S. armed forces, boarded the tanker without any reported gunfire incidents. The U.S. European Command confirmed that the vessel was seized in the North Atlantic based on a warrant issued by a U.S. federal court, in line with President Trump’s efforts to target sanctioned vessels posing threats to the Western Hemisphere’s security and stability.
Pete Hegseth, the U.S. Secretary of War, reiterated on a social media platform that the blockade of sanctioned and illicit Venezuelan oil remains fully enforced worldwide.