Following the US’s abduction of Venezuela president Nicolás Maduro, Donald Trump has announced his intention to buy oil from the country… at a fair price:

-randomly kidnap leader of country
-buy oil from that country at market rate, which they have been asking you to do for ages.

They are calling it the most baffling move in history. https://t.co/cps9gBV5Y4

— NOT Potato Bolshevik (@NotPotBol) January 7, 2026

So what’s actually going on here?

Trump’s resource colonialism in Venezuela

There are a few things to note and consider here. The first and most obvious is that there are no fair deals with the United States. Regardless of how Trump is presenting this, we all know this deal is going to benefit oil executives first and foremost.

Perhaps the Venezuelans have managed to negotiate an unusually favourable deal, but if that is the case, it means they’re now linked to an increasingly unpredictable rogue state. As we’re seeing with Greenland, America’s ‘allies’ cannot rely on the US to stick to its promises. Even if they pay market rates today, that’s no guarantee they’ll pay them tomorrow.

As the following from ABC journalist Rachel Scott elaborates, Venezuela really would be attached at the hip to America:

New: The Trump administration told Venezuela’s interim president the regime must meet several conditions before being allowed to pump more oil, according to three people familiar with the administration’s plan

Among those demands:
– the country must kick out China, Russia, Iran, and Cuba and sever economic ties
– Venezuela must agree to partner exclusively with the U.S. on oil production and favor America when selling heavy crude oil

The problem is that oil is yesterday’s resource. China is one of the biggest buyers of oil from countries outside the US sphere of influence, but that’s changing. Specifically, it’s changing because Chinese solar technology is exceeding growth expectations, and so are Chinese electric vehicles.

As a result of China needing fewer fossil fuels, the value of Iran’s oil has plummeted, and this economic uncertainty is feeding into the current uprising against the regime.

Short termism

America has tarnished its reputation around the world to secure access to a resource it already has which is undoubtedly going to decrease in value. If it’s true elements of the Venezuelan government worked with Trump to banish Maduro, they may come to regret this move when the price of oil dips and the US loses interest in them.

Featured image via Wikimedia

By Willem Moore

From Canary via This RSS Feed.