1.5news - Trump said Venezuela stole America’s oil. Here’s what really happened

Описание: Former U.S. President Donald Trump claimed that Venezuela “stole” American oil, but that statement doesn’t match the legal and historical facts. One of the core arguments behind Trump’s remark was that when Venezuela nationalised its oil industry in the 1970s, it ended the dominant role that foreign firms — including U.S. companies — once had in the country’s oil production. However, those oil reserves and facilities were never U.S. government property, and U.S. companies never owned Venezuela’s oil outright. The nationalisation moved control to the Venezuelan state, which simply removed foreign control from vast oil fields.

Experts say it’s misleading to call that “theft”, because nationalisation was a sovereign act under Venezuelan law and not a seizure of U.S. territory or government assets. After nationalisation, foreign firms were compensated or received arbitration awards, and the Venezuelan industry became state-run.

Trump’s comments also came amid broader geopolitical moves — including a controversial military operation and rhetoric about reopening Venezuela’s oil sector to U.S. firms — but the idea that Venezuela literally stole oil from the U.S. doesn’t hold up under historical or legal scrutiny.