The president Donald Trump declared during an event at the headquarters of the Environmental Protection Agency in Washington that his Secretary of Energy, Chris Wright, is in charge of Venezuela, and took the opportunity to publicly praise his management of the U.S. oil strategy in the South American country.
According to the agency EFE, Trump stated in front of those present: "He is managing Venezuela better than anyone ever has before. I think we can say that Chris Wright is doing a great job. Thank you!".
When questioned about the economic results of the intervention, the leader did not hesitate to assert their value: "We are also gaining a lot. And I believe we have the right to that. It was a one-day war."
In the same intervention, he added that Venezuela is now generating more income than at any previous time: “They are making more money; Chris was showing me some numbers, they are making more money, Venezuela now, than ever before, and we are also making a lot.”
These statements are part of a pattern repeated by Trump in recent weeks.
On his social network Truth Social, he compared the intervention in Venezuela to other military conflicts involving the United States, noting that while the Vietnam War lasted over 19 years and the Korean War over three, what he calls the “Venezuela War” lasted just one day with no recorded deaths.
The role of Wright in Venezuela began to take shape when he traveled to the country in February, being the highest-ranking U.S. official to set foot in Venezuela since the capture of Nicolás Maduro on January 3.
Met with the acting president Delcy Rodríguez and visited oil facilities.
Days after that visit, the Treasury Department approved general licenses 49 and 50, which authorized companies like Chevron, BP, Eni, Shell, and Repsol to resume operations in Venezuela and opened the door to new investments in the sector.
Since then, Wright has played a central role in negotiations with oil companies and in overseeing the marketing scheme for Venezuelan crude oil.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed on May 27 that more than 10 million barrels of Venezuelan oil had arrived in the United States since January, with the proceeds deposited in an account supervised by the Treasury and audited by KPMG.
According to a report from the Financial Times, the Trump administration reportedly raised over 13 billion dollars from Venezuelan oil sales, although only the transfer of 300 million dollars to Venezuela has been publicly confirmed, raising scrutiny over the fate of the remaining funds.
Washington's ambition goes further: it aims for the recovery of the Venezuelan energy sector to attract up to $100 billion in investments, with a priority for American companies.
The situation is complicated, however, by the devastating earthquakes of June 24, which resulted in over 5,200 fatalities and direct physical damages that the World Bank estimates at 19.6 billion dollars, warning that a slow reconstruction could hinder the country's economic recovery for the next decade.
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