President Donald Trump said he had a "very good call" with acting Venezuelan President Delcy Rodriguez on Wednesday, hailing her cooperation with his administration a day before he is scheduled to meet with the country's opposition leader.
"We are making tremendous progress, as we help Venezuela stabilize and recover," Trump said in a social media post. "Many topics were discussed, including Oil, Minerals, Trade and, of course, National Security. This partnership between the United States of America and Venezuela will be a spectacular one FOR ALL."
Separately, Trump said in an interview with Reuters that he expected Rodriguez to visit Washington.
"Not quite yet, but eventually she'll come and I'll go to their country too," Trump said.
The president also said he believed it would be better for Venezuela to remain in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC, but did not commit to the idea and said he hadn't discussed it with leaders in Caracas.
"I think it's better for them if they do it," Trump said.
The US president demurred when asked if he wanted the country to abide by the group's production limits, even as he encouraged massive new investments into Venezuela's energy infrastructure.
"I don't have to worry about it right now, because, you know, I have nothing to do with OPEC," Trump said.
Trump's comments come a day before he is set to have a highly anticipated meeting with María Corina Machado, the Venezuela opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner, who is looking to mend ties with Trump and bolster her standing in Washington.
As Trump moves ahead with his plans to transform Venezuela following the strike that captured strongman Nicolas Maduro, he's opted so far to work with the remnants of the existing regime.
He has also cast doubt on Machado's ability to unify and run the country, comments that have stunned opposition leaders and Machado's allies abroad, including some Republican lawmakers, amid swirling questions about the US president's plans for Venezuela.
Speaking earlier to reporters, Trump called Rodriguez a "terrific person."
"I mean, she's somebody that we've worked with very well," Trump said, adding that their call was long in length and he believed the nations were "getting along very well."
Still, the US president has done little to chart out what future governance of the country could look like -- a key question for some oil companies weighing whether to action his call for investment.
Rodriguez, in a readout earlier Wednesday, described her call with Trump as productive and cordialBloomberg Terminal in a post on Telegram. She also plans to send an envoy to Washington to meet with senior US officials on Thursday, the same day Machado will be holding her own talks.
Since Maduro's capture, Trump has maintained pressure on the government in Caracas by keeping in place a US Navy-enforced oil quarantine and announcing an arrangement with Rodriguez for the country to turn over as much as 50 million barrels of crude valued at about $2.8 billion at current market prices. The US president has said Caracas will only buy US-made goods with revenue from the deal.
Trump's cordial relationship with Rodriguez threatens to complicate matters for Machado, who has been a mainstay of opposition to Maduro and his predecessor Hugo Chávez, as various rival factions jockey to fill the country's power vacuum. Trump has praised Rodriguez's government for releasing some political prisoners, including at least one US citizen.
Hours after the raid to capture Maduro, Trump said he thought Machado lacked the "support" needed to run the country. Machado has since sought to mend ties with the US president, including by saying she wanted to present him with her Nobel prize, an award Trump has long sought.
Some Trump advisers had long favored a transition to Rodríguez as an off-ramp from Maduro's hard-line leadership. They argue that a gradual transition will be less disruptive than a transition to Machado or Edmundo González, the stand-in candidate Machado backed for the 2024 election after she was barred from running.
Trump and administration officials have said they are seeking to stabilize the country and revitalize Venezuela's oil industry before new presidential elections can take place, but have not announced a timetable for that transition.
Trump last week convened a meeting with nearly 20 oil industry representatives, part of a bid to pressure the companies to spend at least $100 billion. That plan has faced skepticism from executives who want legal frameworks and guarantees for their investments and security for employees before agreeing to invest again in Venezuela.
Exxon Mobil Corp. Chief Executive Officer Darren Woods told Trump at the meeting that the country is still "uninvestable," but offered confidence the administration could deliver the needed legal and regulatory reforms for future investments. Rival Chevron Corp. is the only major international oil company operating in Venezuela.
Oil companies are also looking for a stable security environment. Trump, in the interview with Reuters, suggested that his Venezuela efforts could mean it is more likely for the regime in Cuba -- which has historically relied on Venezuelan oil -- to fall.
"Probably yeah, I think so," Trump said.
Venezuela's output has fluctuated with recent levels around nearly 1 million barrels per day, well below a 1970s peak of around 4 million barrels.
Venezuela's return to growth in the global oil market following Maduro's ouster is forecast to boost crude output by roughly 50% over the coming decade, according to industry consultant Enverus. Production is expected to reach about 1.5 million barrels a day by 2035.