Big Oil's Venezuelan Gambit: Empire's Profits or People's Plight?
📰 THE STORY: Bloomberg Business suggests Exxon Mobil and Chevron face a dilemma: Wall Street's push for financial 'discipline' versus former President Donald Trump's call to invest $100 billion in Venezuela. The framing implies corporate responsibility and market forces are the primary drivers in Venezuela's oil sector. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: The US has a long,
documented history of undermining Venezuelan sovereignty to control its oil. In 2002, the US backed a failed coup attempt against democratically elected Hugo Chávez. More recently, in 2019, the Trump administration recognized unelected opposition figure Juan Guaidó as Venezuela's 'interim president,' and imposed crippling sanctions, effectively seizing Venezuelan state assets like CITGO, to coerce
regime change. These actions were not about 'free markets' but about geopolitical control over the world's largest proven oil reserves. Double Standard: When Western corporations operate in resource-rich nations aligned with US interests (like Saudi Arabia or Qatar), concerns about 'spending discipline' or 'political risk' are rarely framed as challenges to national sovereignty. Instead, the
narrative focuses on 'investment opportunities.' When a sovereign nation, like Venezuela, attempts to exert control over its own resources, it becomes a 'test' for foreign capital, often accompanied by threats of sanctions or destabilization, as seen with Libya in 2011, where NATO's 'intervention' destroyed the state and led to slave markets. Follow the Money: The call to 'invest $100 billion'