María Corina Machado said Venezuela’s natural resources "do not belong to an illegitimate regime," challenging Donald Trump’s oil pact with the interim government while avoiding a direct break with Washington.
The deal covers more than 65 billion barrels from Venezuela’s 303 billion barrels of proven crude reserves and was signed with interim president Delcy Rodríguez after Nicolás Maduro’s January removal.
Machado said supporters felt "sadness and anger" at being excluded, and her allies fear the agreement will reduce US pressure for a new presidential election.
Trump and Rodríguez gave no election timetable on Wednesday, saying only that voting would come when Venezuela is "ready," despite claims Machado’s movement won the 2024 vote by a landslide.
The White House says the pact will secure US energy dominance and curb Chinese and Russian influence, but critics have condemned it as a predatory, colonial-style land grab.
How will an unprecedented oil agreement reshape global power dynamics while a nation's democratic future hangs in the balance?
Could a controversial energy pact meant to sideline rival nations ultimately trap investors in a legal and infrastructural nightmare?
The August 2026 US-Venezuela Oil Agreement: Resource Seizure, Geopolitical Realignment, and the Democratic Deficit
Overview
In 2026, after U.S. special forces captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, Washington coordinated with interim President Delcy Rodríguez to reshape Venezuela’s oil sector. Amid global oil shocks caused by the U.S.-Israel war on Iran and rising domestic fuel prices, the U.S. and Venezuela signed a historic oil agreement granting exclusive concessions to a U.S.-backed firm. This deal, enabled by sweeping legal reforms and strict U.S. oversight, prioritized energy security and geopolitical control over immediate democracy. As the interim regime postponed elections and faced domestic backlash, Venezuela’s oil infrastructure remained in crisis, and major energy companies hesitated to invest, casting doubt on the deal’s long-term stability.