The world's largest oil reserves and Latin America's largest gold reserves are continuously being transported to the United States. The departure point, Venezuela, is the country where the U.S. military recently &#34;raided&#34; and kidnapped its president, Nicolás Maduro, in January this year.
U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum recently confirmed that the first batch of Venezuelan gold worth $100 million has arrived in the United States, &#34;to be used for industrial and commercial purposes.&#34; This is the first cooperation reached between the two sides after the U.S. Treasury issued a license for Venezuelan gold transactions. Earlier, starting from January 14, just over a week after Maduro was kidnapped, Venezuela resumed supplying oil to the United States, with the first transaction valued at approximately $500 million.
<img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://inews.gtimg.com/news_bt/OAb7vzsAKg8t_dhpU_8UlzzdLxGJ5KZEE5n-3rQMS7HGwAA/641?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" alt="" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://inews.gtimg.com/news_bt/OAb7vzsAKg8t_dhpU_8UlzzdLxGJ5KZEE5n-3rQMS7HGwAA/641"/> Gold bars from the U.S. Mint stacked in a vault. Data picture/Visual China
Meanwhile, the imprisoned Venezuelan president Maduro and his wife have yet to await their second court hearing, which is expected to take place on March 26.
Venezuela is not only the country with the largest proven oil reserves in the world but also rich in gold, aluminum, coal, diamonds, and rare earth resources, many of which have strategic value. Since the success of the &#34;Bolivarian Revolution&#34; led by Chávez in 1999, preventing imperialist plunder of resources has been Venezuela's fundamental national policy.
&#34;However, now, Venezuela has no choice.&#34; Tamir Polas, former chief of staff to Maduro and former deputy minister of the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry, told China News Weekly that from the moment the U.S. decided to take aggressive military action against Venezuela, the country faced the risk of national disintegration or even &#34;national disappearance.&#34; In this context, although in the long term &#34;most people still firmly support national independence,&#34; the only option for the Venezuelan government now is to make &#34;strategic concessions.&#34;
Polas also believes that when faced with U.S. military invasion, President Maduro's active choice to &#34;bear it all personally&#34; is to leave Venezuela with some space for survival.
On March 5, the U.S. and Venezuela agreed to restore diplomatic relations that had been interrupted for six years. Currently, the U.S. embassy in Caracas, Venezuela's capital, has reopened. A large number of American mining companies have also arrived; Burgum brought representatives from over 20 U.S. mineral companies during his visit to Venezuela in early March. Interim President Rodríguez personally welcomed them and stated that the two countries would work together to develop Venezuela's mining industry.
The rapid restoration of U.S.-Venezuela relations raises questions: does this mean the Venezuelan government has given up on resistance? To what extent will the U.S. intervene in the development of Venezuela's oil and mineral resources? What impact will this have on the interests of other countries in Venezuela?
Recently, Tamir Polas accepted an exclusive interview with China News Weekly on these issues. He has held several deputy ministerial positions in the Venezuelan government and served as the president of a policy bank, working closely with Maduro and Rodríguez during his six years as deputy foreign minister, and has also served as Maduro's chief of staff
<img src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://inews.gtimg.com/news_bt/OjtS3AmYoW141HDPDceAFadBTaTaq9aUQ4_ewLyy8mmV8AA/641?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" alt="" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://inews.gtimg.com/news_bt/OjtS3AmYoW141HDPDceAFadBTaTaq9aUQ4_ewLyy8mmV8AA/641"/> Tamil Polas
&#34;Venezuela has no choice&#34;
China News Weekly: On March 5, 2026, the United States and Venezuela agreed to restore diplomatic relations that had been interrupted for six years. At this time, it had only been two months since Venezuelan President Maduro was kidnapped by the United States. Acting President Rodriguez was once considered a staunch Chavist politician, with a long-standing external image of &#34;not yielding to the U.S.&#34; However, the reality is that in the past two months, Rodriguez has rapidly advanced close contact, negotiations, and the restoration of relations with the U.S., adopting a pragmatic and even compromising strategy on key issues such as oil development. How should the outside world view the policy choices of the Rodriguez government?
Polas: First of all, since January 3, 2026, Venezuela has encountered unprecedented circumstances. The Venezuelan government still recognizes Maduro as the current president, and Rodriguez is merely the acting president. Against this backdrop, the most important challenge facing Rodriguez is to ensure the stability of Venezuela, the internal balance of power, and the continuity of the government, while also ensuring that Venezuela does not face more military strikes or threats.
Rodriguez is a mature politician; she is not facing ideological or historical burdens, but rather the specific situation of a country. Venezuela, a small Latin American country with only 30 million people, has a huge imbalance in military power compared to the United States.
In early January, the U.S. launched a raid on Venezuela's capital, Caracas, which has a population of 6 to 7 million. Trump was warning that the U.S. has the capability to take military action against densely populated areas in Venezuela at any time. Moreover, as seen in Libya, Sudan, and Iraq, military intervention by great powers can lead a country into decades of violence and turmoil. It can be said that from the moment the U.S. decided to take aggressive military action against Venezuela, the country faced the risk of disintegration or even &#34;disappearance.&#34;
Considering the potentially severe consequences, President Maduro prioritized avoiding military conflict with the U.S. before the conflict occurred. At the moment of conflict, I believe that out of a sense of responsibility, President Maduro chose not to escalate confrontation but to personally bear it all, so that Venezuela would have the opportunity to recover from chaos.
Similarly, given the pressure from the U.S. government, Venezuela can only make some strategic concessions to the U.S. while ensuring the unity and cohesion of internal political forces. In short, the conservative choice is to better adapt to the situation. In the future, the international situation may change, but in the short term, we absolutely will not risk entering a state of full confrontation with the U.S. From the results, this approach has also been recognized by Trump.
China News Weekly: Does this contradict Chavism?
Bolas: Regarding Chavismo, some interpret it within the context of anti-imperialism throughout Latin America, while others understand it from the perspective of Venezuela. My personal understanding is that Chavismo has distinct nationalist characteristics, with its core being to bring tangible benefits to the Venezuelan people.
Rodriguez has consistently used Chavismo as a tool for state intervention to achieve social welfare goals. For example, under the long-term sanctions from the United States, to ensure the normal operation of the country, Rodriguez promoted reforms in the oil industry, allowing the private sector to enter the oil field. She succeeded in increasing Venezuela's oil production from 250,000 barrels per day to nearly 1 million barrels per day, achieving a full recovery despite the long-standing severe sanctions from the United States, and the domestic economy gradually stabilized. She also legislated to allow the circulation of the dollar in the Venezuelan economy, which to some extent alleviated hyperinflation.
Overall, during the Maduro era, Rodriguez has early on demonstrated the aspect of a &#34;pragmatic reformer.&#34;
&#34;Normalization&#34; in Extraordinary Times
China News Weekly: Starting from mid-January 2026, ten days after Maduro was kidnapped, Venezuela will resume oil supplies to the United States, with the first batch of transactions valued at approximately $500 million. The White House stated that the U.S. and Venezuela would ultimately reach a historic energy agreement. How different will this cooperation be from the oil trade between the U.S. and Chevron during the Maduro era? To what extent will the U.S. control Venezuela's oil resources?**
Bolas: Firstly, Venezuela has historically been a supplier of oil to the United States, with the main customers of Venezuelan oil being the U.S. This dates back to a century ago. The disruption of this situation is partly due to the emergence of new alternative markets as the global economic landscape has changed. However, the primary reason for Venezuela stopping oil shipments to the U.S. was the decisions made by the U.S. government itself.
During Trump's first presidential term, the U.S. imposed financial sanctions on Venezuela in 2017 and began oil sanctions in 2019, which nearly severed the oil trade between the two countries. Later, during the Biden administration, Chevron managed to obtain a license again.
In this context, the resumption of Venezuela's oil shipments to the U.S. represents a &#34;normalization&#34; of the oil trade relationship between the two countries and is a natural choice as their relations move towards normalization. Geographically, the U.S. and Venezuela are very close. The refining infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico was built to accommodate the type of crude oil exported from Venezuela.
In the future, the U.S. government will play a core role in the allocation and sale of Venezuelan oil. The oil revenues will still belong to the Venezuelan government, but they will be managed and supervised to some extent by the U.S. We are not clear on the implementation details, but it is certain that the U.S. will have a special voice in this process.
This also means that U.S. companies may become more involved in Venezuela's oil trade, not only in the selling phase but also in almost all commercial phases, including production. This new cooperation framework may be built through more large oil companies and related service providers
The details in this regard are still to be discussed, and the United States has not lifted its sanctions yet. However, the Trump administration has set an overall goal. As long as Trump remains in power, these discussions and arrangements will continue.
China News Weekly: To what extent will the oil deal between Trump and Rodriguez affect the Venezuelan government and cooperation with other countries?
Bolas: First of all, like many governments in Latin America, the Venezuelan government, regardless of its ideological or political leanings, recognizes the rise of China and acknowledges that China is a major player in global industry and trade. This is an inevitable trend, and the relationship with China cannot be overlooked.
Maintaining the relationship with China at the highest level has always been the viewpoint of the Venezuelan government. Moreover, if we look at Venezuela's neighbor Guyana, which has rich oil and gas reserves, the American company ExxonMobil is the main developer, but many of their local partners are Chinese companies. This is not geopolitics; it is business complementarity. So, do not focus solely on the provocative rhetoric coming from Washington.
Finally, even if the pressure from the U.S. government allows American companies to gain more benefits in Venezuela, the dynamics of the oil industry, as well as the scale of Venezuela's oil industry and the necessity of attracting external investment, mean that there will be suitable space for global participants to contribute to the recovery of Venezuela's oil industry.
I would also like to add that, like many other issues, this may ultimately require dialogue between China and the U.S. High-level dialogue between China and the U.S. can resolve and ensure the development of Venezuela's oil industry and global participation.
Opposing an Unequal Bilateral Relationship
China News Weekly: In the long term, what kind of national strategy should Venezuela adopt to maintain its independence and strategic balance as much as possible in the context of unilateral sanctions from major powers and complex geopolitical games?
Bolas: Given the current geopolitical realities and the Trump administration's policies towards Venezuela, I believe that, starting from its own fate, the most realistic strategy for Venezuela is to pursue economic recovery. This is what the entire country has lacked for the past decade, especially since the U.S. has imposed the broadest and most severe sanctions in history against us. Now, we should make full use of the existing conditions to at least achieve some positive results from negotiations with the U.S., which is to promote the lifting of sanctions and re-establish connections with the international economy, such as allowing international investment, international credit, and multinational companies to enter Venezuela.
Regardless of their political views, the vast majority of Venezuelans firmly support independence. But &#34;independence&#34; is not only political; it also needs to be realized materially in some way. This is the necessity of rebuilding the Venezuelan economy. Compared to the geopolitical issues we cannot resolve, this choice is more pragmatic. Economic recovery will make the lives of the Venezuelan people more sustainable until more favorable conditions arise, allowing Venezuela to reaffirm its position in a more independent manner.
China News Weekly: According to the court schedule, the next formal hearing for Maduro in the U.S. Southern District Court of New York will take place in late March. Based on your understanding, how will Maduro use this hearing for his defense?
**
Bolas: At least one thing is clear, which is that his defense will focus on the basic fact that he is the head of a sovereign state. It is conceivable that the U.S. government will invoke various legal bases in court to defend its law enforcement actions. Some U.S. officials have stated that U.S. law enforcement is not acting against a head of state, but rather against an &#34;individual prosecuted under U.S. law.&#34; The problem is that even President Trump himself, when promoting the &#34;kidnapping&#34; of Maduro on his social media, referred to him as the President of Venezuela, not just as an individual. These statements are contradictory.
In fact, Maduro's fate is predetermined. The reason is simple: for geopolitical reasons, Venezuela's development strategy in its own oil industry cannot naturally align with that of the United States. Against this backdrop, the U.S. has unilaterally created the Venezuelan issue. And Maduro has been the embodiment of this country for many years.
I want to clarify that Maduro is not an anti-Washingtonist, and it is incorrect to simply understand Chavismo as anti-American. The nature of U.S.-Venezuela bilateral relations is one of imposed unilateralism; the various actions of the U.S. towards Venezuela manifest as hegemony and a disregard for international law. When Maduro handles Venezuela's policy towards the U.S. based on such facts, he is not anti-American, but rather opposed to an unequal bilateral relationship.
Conversely, Latin America shares many cultural commonalities with the United States, and we hope to establish a bilateral relationship with the U.S. based on respect and mutual benefit, rather than viewing each other as enemies. From a realistic perspective, although Venezuela has decided not to ally with the U.S., it has not taken military action or any other actions against the U.S. However, the U.S. continues to portray Venezuela as an &#34;enemy&#34; and views President Maduro as a &#34;drug lord,&#34; which is irrational. The U.S. goal is clear: to convict the leader of a sovereign nation, which is unacceptable in any country.
Therefore, I expect that in the upcoming hearings and trial phases, there will be key debates surrounding Maduro's status as a head of state. Additionally, there is the controversy over the U.S. &#34;long-arm jurisdiction.&#34; One can imagine: if countries allowed law enforcement agencies to enforce their laws around the world, how chaotic the world would be.
Reporter: Cao Ran
(caoran@chinanews.com.cn)
Huo Siyu
(huosiyi@chinanews.com.cn)
Editor: Xu Fangqing

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Venezuela is transporting $500 million worth of oil and $100 million worth of gold to the United States. The U.S. Secretary of the Interior confirmed that the first batch of gold has arrived in the U.S. and will be used for industrial and commercial purposes. This is the first cooperation following the U.S. Treasury's issuance of gold trading licenses. After President Maduro was kidnapped, the country faces the risk of disintegration, and the government has chosen to make strategic concessions. U.S.-Venezuela relations are being restored, and both sides will jointly develop the mining industry

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Why are Venezuela's $500 million in oil and $100 million in gold being sent to the United States?