Trump Praises Maduro’s Replacement As Venezuela Sees Shift In Key Industry

President Donald Trump praised interim Venezuelan President Delcy Rodríguez on Wednesday, saying oil from the South American country “is beginning to flow” just two months after U.S. forces captured dictator Nicolás Maduro.

Trump praised Rodríguez, who was tapped by Venezuela’s ruling party following Maduro’s capture, as the country increased its oil exports last month. Under American supervision, Venezuela doubled its oil exports in February to a five-month high of 788,000 barrels per day, Bloomberg reported.

“Delcy Rodríguez, who is the President of Venezuela, is doing a great job, and working with U.S. Representatives very well. The Oil is beginning to flow, and the professionalism and dedication between both Countries is a very nice thing to see!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Trump made the comment while Interior Secretary Doug Burgum met with the Venezuelan leader in Caracas on Wednesday. Representatives from around two dozen mining and mineral companies also joined Burgum and Rodríguez for the meeting, which focused on paving a way for “capital investment to flow” into Venezuela, Burgum said.

The Interior secretary also leads Trump’s National Energy Dominance Council, which is tasked with cutting red tape and securing American energy independence. Burgum said on Wednesday that his goal to rejuvenate the American energy sector falls in line with the administration’s plan for Venezuela.

“When we are working together in can only mean two things, which is prosperity for the people of Venezuela and for the citizens of the United States, and it also brings peace and stability for the world,” Burgum said.

The American companies at the meeting “represent billions of dollars in investment and thousands of dollars in high-paying jobs,” Burgum added.

After the meeting, Rodríguez signaled that she would push to change Venezuela’s mining law to allow for more U.S. investment in the industry, the Associated Press reported. Venezuela’s commitment to cooperate with the United States shows a remarkable shift in relations since Trump authorized action to remove Maduro from power in Venezuela and bring him to the United States to stand trial on drug trafficking conspiracy charges.

After Trump imposed a complete naval blockade of Venezuela and authorized the U.S. military operation to nab Maduro, the Trump administration began overseeing Venezuela’s state-run oil industry. The United States is especially benefiting from Venezuela’s recent bump in oil output, with American oil refiners, such as Chevron, bringing in their biggest oil hauls from Venezuela in seven years, according to Bloomberg.

Part of the Trump administration’s strategy for overseeing Venezuelan oil sales is to use the sales as “leverage” to push the Venezuelan government toward lasting “change,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in January.

“If we control the flow of oil, the sales of that oil, and the flow of the cash that comes from those sales, we have large leverage,” he said.