Trump is stealing Venezuelan oil.Trump claimed that 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil were already en route to the US, and asserted that the US and Venezuela together possessed 68 percent of the world's oil reserves.
Isn’t what Trump is doing in Venezuela theft?
Posted on May 10, 2026 by Dtesca
According to critics: The act of forcibly seizing a country’s natural resources using military and economic power.
Trump’s Venezuela policy and his relationship with the resources there have become one of the most controversial issues in international politics. Instead of summarizing this situation in a single word, examining the issue from two different perspectives can help you understand the process:
- The Trump Administration’s Perspective
Trump describes his interventions in Venezuela and his efforts to control its oil resources as a “reclaiming of rights.” His justifications are as follows:
Claim for Compensation: He argues that the Maduro administration seized the assets of American oil companies (such as Chevron) in the past, causing these companies billions of dollars in losses.
Fight Against Corruption: He claims that Venezuela’s oil revenues are used to finance illegal activities such as “narcoterrorism” and human trafficking. 1. Investment Promise: He claims to have planned a $100 billion investment to modernize the oil infrastructure, thereby improving the country’s economy.
- The Opponents’ and Critics’ Perspective
On the other hand, many experts and international observers describe this situation as a “resource usurpation” or “modern colonialism”:
Property Rights: According to the Venezuelan constitution, oil and underground resources belong to the state. Trump’s statement that “they stole our oil” is technically incorrect because that oil was never US property; only operating concessions were granted.
Violation of Sovereignty: The military operations that culminated in Maduro’s capture in January 2026 and the transfer of the country’s oil revenues to US-controlled accounts are seen as the seizure of a sovereign state’s resources under international law.
Economic Blockade: The sanctions imposed and the freezing of gold reserves (e.g., gold in the Bank of England) are described by Venezuela as “theft of state assets.” In summary:
Whether the situation constitutes “theft” depends on which legal system and political viewpoint you are considering:
According to Trump: A legitimate intervention to recover compensation for past expropriations and “recover” the region.
According to critics: An act of forcibly seizing a country’s natural resources using military and economic power.
This issue is currently being widely debated globally as a revival of the “Monroe Doctrine” (the absolute dominance of the US in the Americas).
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