Does the US have any real claim on Venezuelan oil as Stephen Miller says?

[mahatmakanejeeves]

This is an opinion piece. I have not read it, so I am not taking a stand on it. It's here for you to read.

News | Donald Trump

Does the US have any real claim on Venezuelan oil as Stephen Miller says?

US companies developed Venezuelan oil fields until the country nationalised its oil reserves in the 1970s.


A man sits in a boat with two crude oil tankers in the background on Lake Maracaibo, near Maracaibo, Zulia state, Venezuela on December 17, 2025 [AFP]

By Sarah Shamim
Published On 18 Dec 2025
18 Dec 2025

United States Homeland Security Advisor and close Trump aide Stephen Miller suggested on Wednesday that Venezuela’s oil belongs to Washington.

Miller’s comments came a day after US President Donald Trump posted on social media that he is imposing a “total and complete blockade” of sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela.

{snip}

[2naSalit]

1. Some of the...

Physical infrastructure, perhaps, but not the actual oil in the ground.

[Ocelot II]

2. Two US companies were involved in the early development of Venezuela's oil industry

in the early 20th century, before WWII - Gulf and Standard Oil. But the collapse in oil demand during the depression caused a drop in Venezuela's oil exports by about 50% as the US started improving its own oil exploration processes. However, during WWII Venezuela was a major supplier of oil to the US and other allies. Its oil industry was nationalized during the '70s, partially in response to the Mideast oil embargo. I don't understand why Trump thinks the participation of a couple of US oil companies almost 100 years ago means the US is entitled to Venezuela's oil, or that the nationalization of its industry meant it was stolen from us.