Writing: La Tabla/Data Journalism Platform 13 FEB 2026
The post that President Donald Trump shared yesterday on his Truth Social account wasn’t just a personal vendetta. It was a blunt and unfiltered acknowledgement that the dynamics of power in dealings with Venezuela are measured in barrels of oil and in who controls the extraction.
“The relations between Venezuela and the United States have been, to put it mildly, extraordinary! We are negotiating very well with President Delcy Rodriguez and her representatives. Oil is starting to flow, and large sums of money, not seen in many years, will soon be greatly benefitting the people of Venezuela,” Trump stated on his social media platform.
Hours later, in front of reporters at the White House, he was even more direct: when asked if he would recognize Delcy Rodriguez’s government, he replied without hesitation: “Well, we have done so right now. We are negotiating with them. And really, they have done a great job. Delcy has done a very, very good job. The relationship is strong. Oil is flowing out.”
What was previously portrayed as a geopolitical conflict over democracy or the fight against drug trafficking now reveals itself to be a commercial dispute among energy elites. Trump’s public slap to magnate Harry Sargeant III—reminding him that “he has no authority whatsoever to act on behalf of the United States”—is, at the very least, paradoxical. Until recently, the Florida businessman, ex-Navy pilot and Republican donor, was a regular on the golf courses of Mar-a-Lago.
What changed? The timing explains it all: on the very same day of the virtual onslaught against Sargeant, U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright toured Petropiar facilities in the Orinoco Belt alongside the interim president, a visit both governments described as the beginning of a “long-term productive partnership.”
This coincidence is too perfect to be coincidental. Sargeant, who since 2017 has built a network of productive sharing contracts (CPP) to exploit oil fields and purchase Venezuelan asphalt, is no longer useful on the board. His profile as an intermediary with the previous regime—and his personal interests—were now obstacles as the White House seeks to seat the heavyweights at the table: Chevron, Exxon, and other multinationals.
Behind the supposed clash of sovereignties lies a less heroic and more market-driven reality. There is no ideological crusade; there is a realignment of contracts. The “maximum pressure” of sanctions only served to clear the field of uncomfortable competitors and pave the way for, under a new licensing scheme, multinationals to regain control of the heavy production that the United States desperately needs.
As Trump himself stated while justifying his support for Delcy Rodriguez: “The relationship we have right now with Venezuela is, I would say, a ten. The biggest beneficiary will be the people of this place.” But the fine print of the deal suggests that, in the new distribution, intermediaries must step aside. The business is now a state affair. Business is business.