President Donald Trump on Friday announced the United States has reached an agreement with Venezuela to take control of 65 billion barrels of the South American country’s oil reserves. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth negotiated the deal with Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez. The announcement comes as the U.S. faces mounting pressure to address high gas prices, with strategic petroleum reserves having fallen below 300 million barrels, down more than 100 million since early 2026. Venezuela holds approximately 303 billion barrels of crude oil, representing about 17% of global reserves, but currently produces only about 1% of the world’s oil due to deteriorating infrastructure.
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