WASHINGTON: U.S President Donald Trump said Saturday that he would “welcome” Chinese investment in Venezuela’s oil industry, positioning Washington as a central broker for global energy interests as Caracas moves to revive its battered economy under a new political order.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said that he expects China to be able to negotiate profitable deals in Venezuela’s oil sector, and that Beijing is “welcome to come in and make a great deal on oil.”
The comments come as Venezuela, home to the world’s largest proven oil reserves, recently reformed its hydrocarbon laws to open up the sector to private and foreign investment.
According to AFP, Trump noted that India has already agreed to an energy cooperation deal with Venezuela’s interim leadership and is set to buy Venezuelan oil “as opposed to buying it from Iran,” saying the “concept of that deal” is already in place.
He reiterated that both India and China could play roles in the emerging Venezuelan oil market.
The U.S. president said the United States and Venezuela would share oil profits, adding that relations with Venezuela’s government were “going along very well with the leadership.”
“We’re going to be selling a lot of oil,” Trump said, claiming that Venezuela would “make more money than they’ve ever made,” and framing the arrangement as beneficial to both nations.
Trump’s statements come against the backdrop of Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodríguez signing sweeping reforms to the country’s oil sector, reducing taxes and permitting greater foreign participation — part of broader economic restructuring following the ouster of Nicolás Maduro.
China had been the dominant buyer of Venezuelan crude under Maduro, but its future role in Caracas’s energy sector was uncertain after Beijing condemned Washington’s forces capturing Maduro early this year. China has previously criticized U.S. involvement in Venezuela as interference in sovereign affairs.
In his remarks, Trump also suggested Washington would pursue a “deal” with Cuba after threatening tariffs on countries supplying oil to Havana.
“I think they probably would come to us and want to make a deal so Cuba would be free again,” he said of Cuban leaders, emphasizing a broader U.S. strategic push in the region.
