Trump to Use Venezuelan Oil to Refill U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve

President Donald Trump announced on August 30, 2026, that the United States will use oil from a new agreement with Venezuela to replenish the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve, a move he described as a "Gift from Venezuela to the People of the United States." The announcement comes just two days after the administration revealed the details of a sweeping deal granting U.S. interests a 55% stake in the development of Venezuelan oil fields containing an estimated 65 billion barrels of proven reserves. In a post on Truth Social, Trump stated that the "topping out process will begin very shortly.