&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Trump claims 'biggest oil deal in world history' with Venezuela, says US will control majority of 65 billion barrels")
US President Donald Trump on Friday (Aug 28) announced that his administration had struck what he described as a massive oil agreement with Venezuela that would give the United States majority control of 65 billion barrels of the country's proven petroleum reserves.
Trump called it "the biggest oil deal in world history", while US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the arrangement would bring nearly $100 billion in private investment into Venezuela.
The Venezuelan government had not immediately confirmed the deal.
Trump says deal will boost US oil reserves
Announcing the agreement on Truth Social, Trump said the arrangement would more than double US oil reserves. He said Rubio and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had reached the agreement with Venezuelan interim leader Delcy Rodriguez through a partnership involving private companies.
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"This Transaction will greatly strengthen the already growing relationship between Venezuela and the United States!" Trump wrote.
Rubio said the agreement was another example of Trump's "America First" approach. "For the Venezuelan people, this deal will bring nearly $100 billion in private investment, support thousands of high-paying jobs, and drive the reconstruction of Venezuela's economy," Rubio wrote on X.
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He also said the deal would secure stable reserves and low-cost oil in the Western Hemisphere while helping bring down gasoline prices in the US.
Deal follows talks over major Venezuelan oil fields
The announcement follows reports that Washington and Caracas had been discussing a much larger arrangement involving Venezuelan oil production.
Previously, Axios reported that the two countries were negotiating over a dozen productive oil fields holding around 90 billion barrels of proven reserves, or roughly a third of Venezuela's total proven reserves of 300 billion barrels.
Under the reported structure, private companies, including US firms, would receive ownership stakes and develop the fields, with more oil revenue flowing back to Venezuela.
Trump's announcement referred to majority control of 65 billion barrels of proven reserves, but the material provided does not explain how that figure relates to the previously reported 90 billion barrels.
The deal also comes after the US ousted and captured longtime Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in January. His former vice president, Delcy Rodriguez, remained as interim leader on condition that she cooperate with Washington.
