Trump says the U.S. could be in Venezuela for ‘years.’ What that could look like : NPR
President Trump said the United States could “run” Venezuela for years, raising questions about the administration’s plans for the country and how long they might take.
TO MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
U.S. oil company executives will meet today at the White House to discuss the future of Venezuela.
STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
The Trump administration ousted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro last week. In an interview with the New York Times, President Trump appeared to say that the United States could rule and give orders to Venezuela for years to come. So what would that look like?
MARTÍNEZ: NPR’s Danielle Kurtzleben is here to tell us about it. So, Danielle, tell us about the details that we know.
DANIELLE KURTZLEBEN, BYLINE: Well, the overall answer is there’s a lot we don’t know. For example, we don’t even know what cooperation between the United States and Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, currently looks like. But we now know that the United States could be here for a while. Here is the exchange between Trump and Times reporters, as published on the Times website.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
UNIDENTIFIED JOURNALIST #1: How long do you think you will rule Venezuela?
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Only time will tell.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER #1: Like, three months, six months, a year, more?
TRUMP: I would say much longer than that.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER #2: Much longer. And…
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER #1: Much longer.
TRUMP: We must rebuild. We have to rebuild the country, and we will rebuild it very cost-effectively.
KURTZLEBEN: On that, the administration said this week that the United States would take 30 to 50 million barrels of oil, sell it and oversee the money. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also said the money would be disbursed, quote, “for the benefit of the American people and the Venezuelan people.” But again, we don’t know what that looks like. However, today Trump will meet with oil company executives to discuss all of this.
MARTÍNEZ: So what else did they say about Venezuelan oil?
KURTZLEBEN: Well, Rubio has outlined three main phases going forward. It’s Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The first is to stabilize Venezuela. Second, he added, there is the recovery, which involves opening access to the Venezuelan market. But he also added that this would involve reconciliation and the reconstruction of civil society. Third, he said, would be the transition. But again, there’s a lot we don’t know about this. For example, when he talks about civil society, is it about nation building and to what extent is that involved?
And there is one more thing that remains open here. When the Times asked Trump what would prompt him to send ground troops to the country, he said he didn’t want to answer that question to a reporter. Trump therefore leaves the possibility of committing troops on the ground, even if none are available at the moment. Now we also got more information overnight. Trump said that because cooperation was going well, he called off a second wave of attacks on the country, but that U.S. ships would remain nearby.
MARTÍNEZ: And here’s something else too, because Trump also threatened Venezuela’s southern neighbor, Colombia. And in the middle of that interview with the Times, he stopped to take a call from Colombia’s president, Gustavo Petro. So what is going on between the United States and Colombia?
KURTZLEBEN: Well, that call was informal, so the Times didn’t report what was said. But afterward, Trump said on social media that it was an honor to speak to Petro. He said they talked about their disagreements and that Trump hoped to meet in the near future. But this turnaround with Colombia really underscores that Trump’s foreign policy worldview is that he can do whatever he wants. The Times asked: Are there limits to your foreign policy powers? And he said, quote, “Yes, there is one thing. My own morals. My own mind. That’s the only thing that can stop me.” All this is perhaps not surprising, but it is nonetheless astonishing. I mean, Trump is a convinced unilateralist, but not only that. This is someone for whom foreign policy can be personal and potentially affected by a phone call.
MARTÍNEZ: Very good. It’s Danielle Kurtzleben from NPR. Thank you very much Danielle.
KURTZLEBEN: Of course.
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