The Trump administration is after Venezuela’s oil with its military campaign against the South American country, the president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, told CNN in an interview.
“(Oil) is at the heart of the matter,” Petro told the U.S. news outlet. “So, that’s a negotiation about oil. I believe that is (US President Donald) Trump’s logic. He’s not thinking about the democratization of Venezuela, let alone the narco-trafficking.”
The Trump administration has stepped up the pressure on Venezuela, sending military ships to the region and striking alleged drug boats off the coast, with President Trump claiming Venezuela—and its government—are heavily involved in the global illicit drug trade. The Colombian president is no fan of his U.S. counterpart, and the feeling is mutual, with the U.S. administration having accused the Colombian president of being involved in drug trafficking, sanctioning him in 2024. For his part, Petro has criticized Trump’s immigration policy and military activity in South America.
Colombia’s Petro told CNN Venezuela was not such a major drug market player and that the amount of illicit drugs passing through the country was small. He noted the country’s oil reserves, however, in support of his claim that Trump was after Venezuela’s most prized commodity.
Venezuela has the largest estimated reserves of crude oil in the world, but it has struggled to keep the oil flowing under heavy U.S. sanctions. Even so, the country’s crude exports topped 1.09 million barrels per day in September, the highest level since early 2020. Those shipments have become increasingly important for Chinese and Indian refiners amid sanctions on Russia and tight heavy-crude supply elsewhere. Any disruption caused by new U.S. enforcement actions could once again squeeze global heavy-sour markets.
Gulf Coast refiners that previously depended on Venezuelan barrels have already turned to heavier grades from the Middle East and from Latin America, including ramping purchases from Guyana’s offshore Stabroek field. That shift has intertwined the Venezuelan crisis with Guyana’s emergence as one of the Western Hemisphere’s fastest-growing oil producers.
By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com
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