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Former President Donald Trump has stated that Venezuela will be “handing over” approximately $2 billion worth of crude oil from Venezuela to the US. This major agreement would redirect shipments originally headed to China while allowing Venezuela sidestep deeper oil production cuts.

“This Oil will be sold at its prevailing market price, and that proceeds will be managed by me, as the President of the United States of America, to guarantee it is used to assist the population of Venezuela and the United States!” Trump stated in an online post.

Authorities in Venezuela and the state company PDVSA have not commented on the alleged agreement.

Context: A Blockade and a Capture

Venezuela currently has vast quantities of oil aboard tankers and held in storage that it has been prevented from shipping due to a blockade ordered by the Trump administration. This campaign of pressure culminated in the removal of Nicolás Maduro, who was apprehended by US forces over the recent weekend.

While top Venezuelan officials have described Maduro’s capture a abduction and charged the US of trying to steal the country’s vast oil reserves, Tuesday’s declaration is seen as a powerful signal that the remaining government is responding to Trump’s requirement to provide entry to US oil companies or be threatened with further military intervention.

Parallel Ambitions: Acquiring Greenland

Simultaneously, Trump and his team have stated they are “examining” a “range of options” in an effort to obtain Greenland. A White House statement on Tuesday noted that using the US military to do so is “on the table”.

“President Trump has made it abundantly clear that securing Greenland is a key national security objective of the United States, and it’s vital to deter our opponents in the Arctic region,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “The president and his team are considering a set of options to achieve this critical foreign policy goal, and of course, employing the US military is a constant possibility at the commander-in-chief’s disposal.”

Leavitt’s comments came as the heads of state of leading European powers voiced resistance against Trump’s long-running desire to take over the Arctic territory.

Additional Major Updates

• Childcare Funds Frozen: The Trump administration is withholding more than $10 billion in federal child and family aid funds to California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota, and New York. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) cited issues regarding fraud and misuse.
• Epstein Files Withheld: The Department of Justice has released less than 1% of the so-called Epstein files, a court filing has revealed. Democrats have escalated criticism of the administration’s “disregard for the law” for withholding the documents.
• Agents Deployed to Minnesota: The administration has dispatched more immigration agents to Minnesota, part of growing pressure against the state and its immigrant populations. Immigration officials called it the agency’s “largest operation to date”.
• Clear Opposition from Greenland: Greenland’s Prime Minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, urged Trump to relinquish his “notions of seizing” Greenland and accused the US of “completely and utterly unacceptable” rhetoric. The Prime Minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen, previously warned that a US attack on a NATO ally would mean the “demise” of the military alliance.
• Law Enforcement Priorities Shifted: Democratic senators alleged in a letter that the Trump administration has stopped trying to combat exploitation and trafficking as it diverts thousands of law enforcement personnel to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Financial Impact

The implications of the US intervention in Venezuela sent shockwaves through the markets. The price of oil dropped after Trump’s announcement, with traders bracing for more supply hitting the market. West Texas Intermediate fell by over 1.5%, while the international benchmark, Brent crude, also decreased.

Bipartisan Opposition

The idea of using the military against Greenland faced immediate bipartisan opposition from US legislators. Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego vowed to introduce a resolution to block such a move. GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson said he did not think military action was “suitable”, and other Republican senators warned it could lead to the “demise” of NATO.

The international geopolitical situation remains fraught, with the US concurrently involved in high-stakes disputes in Venezuela and the North Atlantic while enacting controversial domestic policy shifts.