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Ex-President Donald Trump has announced that Venezuela will be “turning over” approximately $2 billion worth of crude oil from Venezuela to the United States of America. This flagship negotiation would reroute cargoes originally destined for China while assisting Venezuela sidestep deeper oil production cuts.

“This Oil will be sold at its prevailing market price, and that proceeds will be overseen by me, as President of the United States of America, to guarantee it is used to benefit the citizens of Venezuela and the United States!” Trump wrote in an digital statement.

Authorities in Venezuela and the national oil company PDVSA offered no response on the reported agreement.

The Situation: A Blockade and a Capture

Venezuela currently has huge volumes of oil aboard tankers and in storage tanks that it has been prevented from shipping due to a embargo ordered by the Trump administration. This campaign of pressure ended with the toppling of Nicolás Maduro, who was captured by American military forces over the recent weekend.

While top Venezuelan officials have described Maduro’s capture a kidnapping and alleged the US of seeking to take the country’s immense oil reserves, Tuesday’s statement is seen as a powerful signal that the remaining government is bowing to Trump’s demand to grant access to US oil companies or risk additional military intervention.

Another Goal: Acquiring Greenland

At the same time, Trump and his team have stated they are “looking into” a “range of options” in an bid 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 perfectly clear that securing Greenland is a key national security objective of the United States, and it’s vital to thwart our opponents in the Arctic region,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “The president and his team are considering a range of options to accomplish this significant 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 pushed back against Trump’s longstanding desire to annex the Arctic territory.

Further Significant Events

• Family Assistance Blocked: The Trump administration is withholding more than $10 billion in federal childcare and family assistance funds to several states including California and New York. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) cited concerns about fraud and misuse.
• Epstein Files Withheld: The Department of Justice has released a tiny fraction of the so-called Epstein files, a court filing has shown. Democrats have escalated criticism of the administration’s “unlawful actions” for sealing the files.
• Agents Deployed to Minnesota: The administration has deployed more immigration agents to Minnesota, continuing escalating attacks against the state and its immigrant populations. Immigration officials called it the agency’s “largest operation to date”.
• Greenland’s Firm Rejection: Greenland’s Prime Minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, urged Trump to abandon his “fantasies about annexation” Greenland and accused the US of “wholly inappropriate” rhetoric. The Prime Minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen, previously warned that a US attack on a NATO ally would mean the “end” of the military alliance.
• Focus Changed: Democratic senators claimed in a letter that the Trump administration has ceased work to combat trafficking and cartel activity as it reassigns thousands of law enforcement personnel to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Market Reaction

The aftermath of the US intervention in Venezuela sent shockwaves through the markets. The price of oil fell after Trump’s announcement, with traders expecting more supply becoming available. West Texas Intermediate fell by 1.6%, while the international benchmark, Brent crude, also slipped.

Criticism from Lawmakers

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

The wider diplomatic landscape remains tense, with the US at once involved in major disputes in South America and the Arctic while carrying out contentious domestic policy shifts.