María Corina Machado criticized this Thursday the large-scale oil agreement between the U.S. and Venezuela, in a video where she expressed feeling "sadness and anger."
"I know what you are feeling—sadness, anger, that discomfort so often repeated in our history because someone decides about our lives, in our name, without involving us," she pointed out.
The opposition leader explained that it took her several days to respond because she wanted to gather information before speaking: "I took a few days to do so because, given that this is a serious matter, I thought it was most responsible to first gather as much information as possible."
The agreement was announced at the end of August by President Donald Trump, who described it as the largest oil deal in history, and was confirmed by the acting president Delcy Rodríguez, who publicly thanked Trump.
According to Rodríguez, the agreement is valid for 25 years, covering 17 oil fields with reserves of approximately 65 billion barrels —around 22% of Venezuela's proven reserves— and anticipates investments exceeding 100 billion dollars.
Machado did not question the need for foreign investment or the alliance with Washington, but he did question the legitimacy of the regime to commit the national heritage.
"The heritage of our land does not belong to an illegitimate regime; it belongs to the Venezuelan people." She emphasized that the U.S. is Venezuela's natural strategic partner, but warned that this partnership must be managed correctly: "The enemies of the United States in Venezuela are currently in Miraflores."
"Who is signing? What is actually being signed? Who is putting up the money? Who is providing the guarantees? How does this benefit Venezuelans?" he questioned.
As a counterproposal, Machado recalled the energy plan he presented in March of this year during the CERAWeek conference in Houston, structured around five pillars: a transparent legal framework approved by a legitimate National Assembly; an independent hydrocarbons agency; public and open bidding; a competitive and stable tax regime; and legal certainty with international arbitration.
On that occasion, Machado estimated that Venezuela could produce up to 5 million barrels per day with an investment of about 150 billion dollars under a democratic government.
The U.S. Secretary of Energy, Chris Wright, traveled to Caracas on September 1 and 2 to meet with Rodríguez at Miraflores and sign additional agreements with Chevron and Eni, describing the day as a “historic day.” Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia were excluded from all of those negotiations, according to reports from previous weeks.
The opposition figure also recalled that sectors of Chavismo protested in Caracas against the agreement as they viewed it as a surrender of sovereignty, even though the PSUV officially supported it.
Machado closed his message with a statement that encapsulates his stance on any negotiations of this magnitude: "Venezuela is worth much more than its oil. The true value of Venezuela is its people, who, when it comes to cooperation, are the best partners on the planet and will never sell our freedom or that of our country."
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