Why was Trump arrested the Venezuelan President Maduro? The truth is in the 3030 billion barrels of oil

On the night of January 2, 2026, the U.S. military deployed over 150 fighter jets to raid Venezuela, dragging the sleeping Maduro couple out of their bedroom and arresting them, then transporting them to New York. Trump immediately announced the takeover of oil facilities. Historian Salas bluntly states that drug charges are a cover-up; the real motive is to regain control of the world’s largest oil reserves (3.03 trillion barrels), marking a militarized return to “Donald Roosevelt” style policies.

The Internal Power Struggle Between Negotiators and War Hawks

Since Trump’s re-election in 2025, there has been a clear division within his administration over whether to overthrow Maduro’s regime. One faction, represented by presidential envoy Grenell, advocates for economic negotiations, while the other, led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, pushes for military overthrow. This factional struggle ultimately resulted in a victory for the war hawks, revealing a fundamental shift in Trump’s foreign policy from the “art of the deal” to “military supremacy.”

In January 2025, Trump dispatched Grenell to Venezuela to discuss issues such as repatriation of migrants and easing oil export restrictions. By summer 2025, economic negotiations had made progress: Venezuela’s state oil company granted Chevron full control over joint oil projects, and discussions were underway for Chevron to acquire stakes in another major oil field; ConocoPhillips, which withdrew from Venezuela in 2007, was also negotiating with the government.

However, the hardline faction in the Trump administration opposed Grenell’s flexible approach. The leading figure was Secretary of State Rubio, whose ancestors came from immigrant families before the Cuban Revolution and who harbors deep resentment toward the Castro government. As a Florida senator, Rubio repeatedly urged the government to take action against leftist governments in Venezuela, Cuba, and Nicaragua. In May 2025, Rubio met secretly with Venezuelan opposition figures fleeing to the U.S., including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Machado, as opposition groups began formulating plans for “100 hours” and “100 days” after Maduro’s fall.

The New Yorker quoted anonymous U.S. officials saying that, besides Rubio, White House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Stephen Miller played an unusually important role. Miller believed military strikes would expand presidential power and viewed Venezuelan migrants as “foreign enemies.” Unlike his predecessor, Defense Secretary Hegseth, who only says “yes” and never disobeys orders. In early October, Trump halted Grenell’s negotiations, disappointed that Maduro refused to voluntarily relinquish power and continued denying drug trafficking. Rubio believed Grenell’s negotiations were only adding chaos to the problem.

Oil Competition Under the Mask of the Drug War

Why does Trump officially cite “drug terrorism” as the reason for arresting Venezuelan President Maduro? In February 2025, Trump declared the “Aragua Train” and “Sun Cartel” criminal groups as “foreign terrorist organizations,” claiming their members infiltrated the U.S. illegally, engaging in murder, kidnapping, extortion, and smuggling of people, drugs, and weapons. Trump stated that the “Sun Cartel” was led by Maduro himself, who “uses illegal drugs as a weapon” to harm America.

However, this narrative has been widely questioned. The New York Times reported in March 2025 that multiple U.S. intelligence agencies assessed that the “Aragua Train” had little to no connection with Maduro’s government and was even hostile to it; only the FBI believed there was a link. Ironically, since Trump announced a new round of the “War on Drugs,” he has pardoned former Honduran President Hernández, who was sentenced to 455 years for smuggling 400 tons of cocaine into the U.S.

Three Motives Reveal the True Purpose

Oil Resource Competition: Venezuela holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves (3.03 trillion barrels), but sanctions and governance failures have led to low production. Trump describes Venezuela’s decades-long low oil exports to the U.S. as “property theft,” meaning the oil industry established by Americans in Venezuela was “stolen” through Chavez and Maduro’s nationalization policies. At a press conference, Trump announced plans to send the largest U.S. oil companies into Venezuela to restore infrastructure.

Return of Monroe Doctrine: Trump criticized previous presidents for not taking military action against Venezuela, emphasizing that such neglect deviates from America’s core foreign policy principles cultivated over more than two centuries. He proudly claimed that Monroe Doctrine has been surpassed in his generation, calling it “Donald Rooseveltism,” asserting that “under the new national security strategy, America’s dominance in the Western Hemisphere will be forever unquestioned.”

Midterm Election Strategy: Trump’s approval ratings for economic policies fell to 36%, and the price of a McDonald’s meal rose from $7.29 to $9.29, sparking public discontent. Demonstrating strength through military action and promising to regain control of oil to lower energy prices are political gambles aimed at salvaging the midterm elections.

Historian Salas notes that former National Security Advisor John Bolton wrote in his book that during Trump’s first term, he viewed Venezuela as an “appendage” of the U.S., and was highly dissatisfied with Venezuela’s 1976 nationalization of its oil industry. After Chavez came to power, he established a joint oil enterprise, achieved fiscal surpluses through rising oil prices, and vigorously developed social welfare policies—actions that touched U.S. core interests. Since Chavez’s rise, U.S. foreign policy toward Venezuela shifted toward regime change through economic sanctions.

Months of Preparation Behind the 30-Minute Action

For this operation, the U.S. military and intelligence agencies had prepared for months. Intelligence personnel continuously monitored Maduro’s movements, including his residence, travel routes, eating habits, attire, and even pets. The participating U.S. troops built a replica of Maduro’s Caracas safe house to rehearse infiltration routes. By early December, the “Absolute Resolve” operation was finalized, with all troop deployments completed, awaiting the right moment.

At 2:01 Caracas time, the arrest team landed inside the Tiumen military base at Maduro’s residence. CNN reported that during the raid, Maduro and his wife were sleeping and were “dragged out of their bedroom and arrested.” Trump hinted that U.S. forces cut off Caracas’s power during the operation, saying, “Thanks to some specialized skills we possess, Caracas’s lights were basically turned off, and it was pitch dark there.”

Researcher Wang Haolan from the Asia Society analyzed that the U.S. government’s new National Security Strategy issued last December reaffirmed the Monroe Doctrine, meaning the U.S. can withdraw from the “global policeman” role but must maintain absolute control over its traditional sphere of influence in the Western Hemisphere. Historically, the U.S. relied on proxy wars and supporting pro-American forces to exert influence, but now “Trumpism” favors direct control of tangible interests. Even within the Trump administration, motives vary—Rubio, for example, is more driven by ideological reasons to overthrow leftist regimes in Latin America, but ultimately, what might persuade Trump is likely the pursuit of tangible, pragmatic interests.