White House policy adviser Stephen Miller said the United States has reversed what he described as a long-standing strategic imbalance involving Venezuela’s oil reserves, arguing that recent actions have cut off funding streams previously used by U.S. adversaries while restoring American economic and security interests.
Venezuela’s Oil Reserves and U.S. Involvement
Speaking in a televised interview, Miller stated that Venezuela holds the largest proven oil reserves in the world, located within close proximity to the United States. According to Miller, the United States played a central role in developing the country’s oil sector decades ago, from discovery to extraction and refinement.
“We discovered the oil, we created the technology to extract the oil, we invested in the platforms, and we built the refineries to process that heavy crude,” Miller said, adding that the technical expertise required to refine Venezuela’s heavy crude oil was primarily developed in the United States and later shared abroad.
Miller argued that, until recently, control of those oil revenues had shifted away from the United States and toward hostile actors. He said the oil income was exploited by American adversaries to finance military expansion and international terrorism.
“That oil reserve was exploited by our adversaries to fund their ambitions, to fund their militaries, and to fund their terrorism,” Miller said. He also claimed that during this period, the United States lost access to resources, wealth, and infrastructure it had helped create.
According to Miller, recent U.S. actions have reversed what he called a “historic injustice,” cutting off those revenue streams and limiting the Venezuelan government’s ability to project influence abroad.
He specifically referenced the Maduro regime, stating it no longer has the financial capacity to send “terrorists, cartels, gang members, and drugs” into the United States. Miller framed this shift as having direct implications for domestic safety and border security.
Miller credited former President Donald Trump’s leadership for what he described as a successful strategic outcome, characterizing the effort as highly effective from a military and security standpoint.
“This has been a military masterclass under President Trump’s leadership,” Miller said, claiming the changes ultimately saved “hundreds of thousands of American lives.”
