US President Donald Trump said Thursday that oil companies will spend "at least" $100 billion in Venezuela.
"The top 14 companies are coming here," Trump told Fox News ahead of the meeting with oil executives at the White House.
"They're going to go in, they're going to rebuild the whole oil infrastructure. They're going to spend at least $100 billion," Trump said.
The US carried out a Jan. 3 military operation in Venezuela, capturing President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores. Trump said his administration would "run" Venezuela and its oil assets during a transition period.
The Trump administration has intensified military operations in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific Ocean since September, citing efforts against narcotics trafficking.
Trump said the American military has "knocked out" 97% of the drugs coming into the US by water.
"We are going to start now hitting land, with regard to the cartels. The cartels are running Mexico. It's very, very sad to watch and see what's happened to that country, but the cartels are running and they're killing 250,000 to 300,000 people in our country every single year," he added.
- Venezuela 'wouldn't know how to have an election right now'
Trump said Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado will be coming "next week sometime" to Washington, DC. “And I look forward to saying hello to her.”
The Nobel Committee awarded Machado the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts to defend democratic rights and promote a peaceful transition from authoritarian rule to democracy in Venezuela.
"I've heard that she wants to do that. That to be a great honor," Trump replied when asked if he would accept the Nobel Prize if she wanted to hand it to him.
Trump said Venezuela "wouldn't even know" how to have an election at present.
"The country has become third world, and they wouldn't know how to have an election right now, we're going to rebuild the oil and the oil infrastructure will be in charge of it ... we're going to rebuild the country, and ultimately you can have elections," he added.
Trump said Cuba "totally" relies on Venezuela for money and for oil.
"Cuba gives protection to Venezuela, and Venezuela gives Cuba money through oil, and it’s worked that way for a long time, but it doesn’t work that way anymore, so I don’t know what Cuba's going to do. I think Cuba's going to fail," he added.
By Diyar Guldogan in Washington
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr
