‘Only Time Will Tell’ – Trump Says US Will Control Venezuela, Oversee Oil For Years

The United States is preparing to take control of Venezuela and oversee its oil revenues for a period extending well beyond a year, President Donald Trump has said.

Trump made the remarks in a wide-ranging, two-hour interview published on Thursday, in which he suggested that Washington’s involvement in Venezuela would be long-term and deeply tied to the country’s oil sector.

“Only time will tell” how long the United States will oversee Venezuela, Trump said. When asked by the newspaper if it would be three months, six months, a year or longer, Trump said: “I would say much longer.”

The comments indicate that U.S. control of Venezuela is not envisioned as a short transitional arrangement but one that could stretch for several years.

Trump said the U.S. plans to rebuild Venezuela while exerting control over its most valuable resource. “We will rebuild it in a very profitable way,” he said of the country, where he sent troops to seize President Nicolas Maduro in a night raid on January 3.

According to Trump, oil will be central to the U.S. strategy in Venezuela. “We’re going to be using oil, and we’re going to be taking oil. We’re getting oil prices down, and we’re going to be giving money to Venezuela, which they desperately need.”

The New York Times, which conducted the interview, reported that Trump also appeared to ease earlier threats of military action against Venezuela’s neighbour Colombia. Trump invited Colombia’s leftist leader to Washington, despite having previously described him as a “sick man.”

Trump further said the United States was working closely with Venezuela’s interim government following Maduro’s removal. He added that the U.S. was “getting along very well” with the government of the interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, a longtime Maduro ally who had served as the ousted leader’s vice president.

The remarks underscore a shift toward a prolonged U.S. role in Venezuela’s political and economic affairs, with oil revenues at the centre of Washington’s plans.

Earlier, SaharaReporters reported that the U..S. President Donald J. Trump announced Wednesday that Venezuela will use the proceeds from a newly agreed oil deal to buy products exclusively from the United States, elevating economic ties between the two countries. According to the president’s post on his Truth social media platform , the purchases will span several key American industries.

“I have just been informed that Venezuela is going to be purchasing ONLY American Made Products, with the money they receive from our new Oil Deal.”

The president said the intended purchases will target key sectors of the U.S. economy.

“These purchases will include, among other things, American Agricultural Products, and American Made Medicines, Medical Devices, and Equipment to improve Venezuela’s Electric Grid and Energy Facilities.”

Trump portrayed the decision as strengthening the commercial relationship between the U.S. and Venezuela.

“In other words, Venezuela is committing to doing business with the United States of America as their principal partner – A wise choice, and a very good thing for the people of Venezuela, and the United States. Thank you for your attention to this matter!.”

Earlier, SaharaReporters reported that

Venezuela and the United States of America signed an agreement allowing Venezuela to export $2 billion worth of its crude oil to the U.S., President Donald Trump announced.

The US claimed the announcement marked a major development in negotiations between the two countries amid Venezuela’s deepening political and economic crisis.

The deal, which Trump described as a flagship negotiation, is expected to divert Venezuelan oil supplies away from China while helping the South American nation avoid steeper production cuts caused by export restrictions and storage constraints.

It also signals a shift in the U.S.–Venezuela relations following months of heightened pressure from Washington against Caracas. (SaharaReporters)