Trump says US will oversee Venezuela ‘for years’

US President Donald Trump has openly said that the United States will control Venezuela and its oil reserves “for years” to come, boasting about the abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and signaling a prolonged, unlawful economic and political intervention in the South American country.

In a wide-ranging interview with The New York Times on Wednesday, Trump emphasized that the US would be “running Venezuela and extracting oil from its huge reserves for years,” insisting that the country’s interim government, composed entirely of former Maduro loyalists, is “giving us everything that we feel is necessary.”

When asked how long the US would maintain oversight, he replied, “Only time will tell,” while asserting that American forces remain a looming presence just offshore.

Trump also said during the nearly two-hour interview, “We will rebuild it in a very profitable way. We’re going to be using oil, and we’re going to be taking oil. We’re getting oil prices down, and we’re going to be giving money to Venezuela, which they desperately need.”

Trump’s remarks came after American officials announced plans to assume indefinite control over Venezuela’s oil sales and proceeds, part of a three-phase plan outlined by Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Republican lawmakers have largely supported the administration’s intervention, while Democrats warned of a prolonged foreign operation with no clear legal authority.

However, Trump refused to specify a timeline for US control, only saying, “I would say much longer,” leaving Venezuela’s political and economic future subject to potentially indefinite American domination.

The US president also avoided explaining why he recognized Maduro’s vice president, Delcy Rodríguez, instead of opposition leader María Corina Machado, who had led a victorious election campaign and recently won the Nobel Peace Prize.

Trump claimed, “Marco speaks to her all the time,” and asserted ongoing communications with Rodríguez’s administration.

He also made no commitments regarding future Venezuelan elections, sidestepping questions about restoring the country’s long-standing democratic institutions.

Trump further detailed the operation that kidnapped Maduro and his wife, praising the planning and execution that involved creating a life-size replica of Maduro’s compound in Kentucky for training.

US says will assert control over Venezuela’s oil sales, proceeds ‘indefinitely’

The US says it will exercise indefinite control over Venezuela’s oil sales and proceeds after kidnapping its president.

Trump said the raid on Venezuela killed roughly 70 Venezuelans and Cubans, bragging about the so-called US military prowess.

The US president repeatedly emphasized US control over Venezuelan oil, noting, “They’re giving us everything that we feel is necessary.”

“Don’t forget, they took the oil from us years ago,” he claimed.

While discussing plans to revive the oil sector, Trump admitted it would take years, and he refused to confirm whether American troops would intervene if access was blocked or if Russian and Chinese personnel remained.

He also revealed discussions are underway with American oil executives, who are hesitant to invest due to potential instability and interference from Venezuelan military and intelligence forces, which are cut out of the profits by the US aggression.

Inside Venezuela, the situation seems unstable, but Rodríguez, sworn in after Maduro’s abduction, says “there is no foreign agent governing Venezuela.”

Analysts say authorities have not openly responded to US demands, suggesting acceptance under duress or outright coercion, while internal divisions and the stance of the powerful military could still disrupt Washington’s plans.

The US has been pursuing a months-long pressure campaign against Maduro, who faces drug trafficking charges in New York that he strongly denies.

Caracas, however, has time and again firmly denied any connection to drug trafficking and maintained that Washington aimed to overthrow the Venezuelan president in a bid to take control of the nation’s vast oil reserves.

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