Venezuelans Skeptical, Angry Over US Oil Deal

Venezuelans have reacted with a mix of outrage and skepticism to a major oil agreement announced by US President Donald Trump, which would grant the United States a stake in the country's vast oil reserves. The announcement, made on a Friday night, has been met with little detail from the White House, which has only referred to it via a social media post as "the biggest oil deal in world history."

The deal comes months after US forces captured then-President Nicolás Maduro in a January raid and brought him to New York to face federal drug trafficking charges. For many on the streets of Caracas, the agreement is seen as a move by the current government to cling to power.

"I think it's a measure that should have been taken, but not for the purposes being pursued by these people — those currently in power," said Douglas Borjas, a street seller preparing arepas at a food market. "It's like, 'I'll give you a huge amount of oil as long as you leave me alone here in power.'"

Others expressed a sense of powerlessness. "It is not only worrying, but also outrageous because we Venezuelans are a drop in the ocean. We have no power to intervene beyond raising awareness or doing what we always do in our daily lives," said architect Lisandro Castro.

Grocery owner Jose Riera voiced similar disappointment. "When I read the news I thought the same thing I have been seeing: that all the United States want is to take the oil, nothing more," he said, adding that he had hoped for change after Maduro's capture but now feels "totally disappointed."

Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, has framed the deal as a step toward economic recovery that would modernize the country's oil industry. A statement from her office said the agreement involves developing 17 oil fields with a proven potential of 65 billion barrels, could attract $100 billion in investment, and generate more than $209 billion in tax revenue.

However, no text of the agreement has been released, and it remains unclear when production could begin or who would finance the necessary work. The deal follows a significant opening of Venezuela's oil industry under Rodríguez, who signed an overhaul in January allowing private companies to operate oil fields and sell crude, easing state controls imposed under previous socialist governments.

Venezuela holds the world's largest proven crude oil reserves, but corruption, mismanagement, and US sanctions drove production down from about 3.5 million barrels per day in 1999 to less than 400,000 barrels per day in 2020. Years of neglect have also left the country with deteriorating infrastructure and recurring oil spills, including extensive pollution in Lake Maracaibo, once a center of its petroleum industry.