President Donald Trump said that the US operation in Venezuela is different from what happened in Iraq because this time, America will keep the oil. He rejected any comparisons between the two situations.
Trump explained his position during a talk with Joe Scarborough from Morning Joe. He pointed out that former President George W. Bush did not keep Iraq’s oil, but the current administration has different plans for Venezuela. “The difference between Iraq and this is that [former President George W. Bush] didn’t keep the oil. We’re going to keep the oil,” he said, according to The Hill.
“In 2016, I said we should have kept the oil. It caused a lot of controversy. Well, we should have kept the oil,” Trump continued, as the Morning Joe host remembers. “And we’re going to rebuild their broken-down oil facilities, and this time we’re going to keep the oil.”
The oil companies will spend money to fix Venezuela’s infrastructure
The comments come amid growing debate over America’s role in Venezuela and concerns from lawmakers and foreign policy experts who warn against repeating past mistakes in the region. Critics argue that Trump’s remarks echo rhetoric used ahead of previous military interventions and risk inflaming tensions both domestically and internationally.
Administration officials have not provided further details on what Trump meant by retaining oil or how such a policy would be implemented. The White House also did not immediately respond to questions about the legal or diplomatic implications of the president’s statement.
Trump said that US oil companies could help rebuild Venezuela’s oil system. He said this work might take less than 18 months to complete. “I think we can do it in less time than that, but it’ll be a lot of money,” Trump said. “A tremendous amount of money will have to be spent, and the oil companies will spend it, and then they’ll get reimbursed by us or through revenue.”
The president explained that oil companies would spend a lot of money on the project. After they finish the work, the companies would get their money back either from the US government or through oil revenue. This approach shows how Trump uses military and economic power to advance his policies.
The situation in Venezuela changed after a US military operation in Caracas on Saturday. The operation led to the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores.
Delcy Rodriguez, who was Maduro’s vice president, became interim president on Monday. However, Trump made it clear that the US is now running Venezuela. This military action contrasts with Trump’s earlier promises of peace at the start of the year.
Trump said a team of US officials will handle America’s role in Venezuela. The team includes Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, deputy White House chief of staff Stephen Miller, and Vice President Vance. But Trump told NBC News that he is the one ultimately in charge.
Published: Jan 6, 2026 05:53 pm