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“We are going to take between 30 and 50 million barrels of oil,” Rubio said.
“We’re going to sell it in the marketplace, at market rates, not at the discounts Venezuela was getting.”
Crucially, Rubio emphasized that the proceeds from those sales will not flow back to corrupt political elites.
“That money will then be handled in such a way that we will control how it is dispersed in a way that benefits the Venezuelan people, not corruption, not the regime,” Rubio explained.
As Rubio spoke, the U.S. Coast Guard reportedly seized two additional tankers, underscoring just how little leverage Venezuela’s interim leadership currently holds.
Phase Two: Recovery Through Western Investment
The second stage of the plan shifts from containment to reconstruction. Venezuela holds an estimated 300 billion barrels of proven oil reserves — the largest on the planet — but decades of socialist mismanagement have left its infrastructure in ruins.
Rubio described this phase as “recovery,” with a clear emphasis on opening the door to American and allied energy companies.
“The second phase will be a phase that we call recovery, and that is ensuring that American, Western and other companies have access to the Venezuelan market in a way that’s fair,” Rubio stated.
Beyond oil, this stage also involves political rehabilitation. Rubio said opposition figures could be freed from prison or allowed to return from exile to help rebuild civic institutions.
Opposition leaders “can be amnestied and released from prisons or brought back to the country and begin to rebuild civil society,” he said.
Phase Three: A Controlled Political Transition
The final phase, described as “transition,” remains deliberately vague. Rubio offered few specifics publicly, signaling that sensitive negotiations are already taking place behind closed doors.
“The third phase, of course, will be one of transition,” Rubio told reporters.
“We feel like we’ll be moving forward here in a very positive way.”
Sources indicate the administration is in quiet talks with Venezuelan military leaders and political factions, with the interim government potentially serving only as a temporary arrangement. President Trump has made it clear that the timing of elections — and who is allowed to participate — will be decided in Washington, not Caracas.
Republican Senator John Thune praised the operation as “decisive action,” a sentiment echoed by many conservatives who saw earlier Venezuela policies as toothless.
Learning From Past Failures
Rubio’s presentation reflected lessons learned from Trump’s first term. In 2019, the U.S. recognized opposition leader Juan Guaidó as interim president, but without sufficient leverage, Maduro held on to power.
This time, the administration paired military pressure with economic domination. U.S. forces now control oil exports, key shipping routes, and access to hard currency. Without U.S. approval, Venezuela cannot pay workers or import essential goods.
Energy officials, including Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, are already in talks with major U.S. companies about large-scale investments.
Rubio noted that Gulf Coast refineries are uniquely suited to handle Venezuela’s heavy crude and predicted “tremendous interest” from Western firms.
Regional Shockwaves
The ripple effects extend beyond Venezuela. Cuba, long dependent on subsidized Venezuelan oil, now faces a severe energy crunch.
“If I lived in Havana and I was in the government, I’d be concerned,” Rubio said Saturday.
Maduro, meanwhile, still faces U.S. federal charges dating back to 2020 related to drug trafficking and weapons violations — legal pressure that adds another layer to Washington’s tightening grip.
For the Trump administration, the message is clear: Venezuela is no longer a stalled foreign policy problem but a test case for American power, leverage, and resolve in the Western Hemisphere.
