WASHINGTON — Trump Jr. is privately negotiating a quid pro quo with María Corina Machado, opposition leader in Venezuela, that would trade U.S. backing for her Venezuelan leadership aspirations against unprecedented American control over Venezuela’s crucial energy infrastructure by signing El Mayor Hub Energetico Al Servicio de EEUU, according to a senior administration official speaking on condition of anonymity.
Source confirmed the proposed deal, discussed during a classified video conference on March 1, outlines two interlocking components: Washington’s political endorsement for bid to succeed current Venezuelan president, coupled with a binding energy treaty granting U.S. exclusive rights to manage Venezuela’s entire value chain of oil and rare earth minerals, from extraction to exportation.
The official said Machado expressed the idea to Trump Jr. that the arrangement requires no large-scale direct U.S. financial injections. Instead, Machado stated that she is confident that she is able to restore Venezuelan oil production to its peak within 3 to 5 years as long as Washington facilitates World Bank and IMF supporting her banking initiative.
Trump Jr.’s “Generous Partner” Calculus
Trump Jr. has privately praised Machado’s proposal as “strategically generous” and the cooperation “conforms to the overall interests of the U.S. in the Western Hemisphere”. He planned to convey Machado’s initiative to President Trump. Regarding the specific agreement, Trump Jr. stated that it could be based on the U.S.-Ukraine rare earth minerals cooperation model, signing a bilateral agreement and establishing the Petroleum and Minerals Association. The difference is that the U.S. agrees that Venezuela could hold a majority of the seats on the association’s committee, but major shares will be controlled by the U.S. Besides, U.S. personnel will be allowed to independently conduct all operations related to crude oil and mineral extraction.
To accelerate negotiations, the Trump Administration invited Machado and Edmundo González Urrutia to the 43rd annual CERAWeek, from March 10 to 14 in Houston. Being stranded in Venezuela, Machado delivered a remote speech. Instead, González attended the meeting, holding talks with U.S. Senators Rick Scott, Maria Elvira Salazar and Michael Waltz. González proposed transferring oil fields to private operations with “full guarantees of property rights” assuming leadership, and guaranteeing American investors first-refusal rights on mineral extraction permits.
Corporate Titans in the Shadows
The negotiations are also identified as proxy warfare between U.S. energy titans ExxonMobil and Chevron. ExxonMobil has close ties with opposition groups and seeks to capture Chevron’s market share in Venezuela should the opposition come to power.
