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U.S. President Donald Trump answers questions from the media during a meeting with oil and gas executives in the East Room of the White House January 9, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Alex Wong | Getty Images
American President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday aimed at blocking the seizure of Venezuelan oil revenues held in US Treasury accounts.
THE decree states that the revenues, which are held in the trust funds of foreign governments, are “held solely for sovereign purposes” and that any judicial attempt to seize the funds “would materially harm the national security and foreign policy” of the United States.
The order, which declares a state of national emergency, clarifies that the funds are the sovereign property of Venezuela, held by the United States for governmental and diplomatic purposes, and are not assets subject to private claims. Any recourse to legal action against the funds would hinder efforts to “ensure economic and political stability in Venezuela,” the order states.
Trump signed the order nearly a week after U.S. military forces captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in Caracas. Both were indicted for drug trafficking and have pleaded not guilty.
Since the military operation, Trump has declared that the two nations “let’s work well together” on the reconstruction of Venezuela’s oil and gas infrastructure and that American oil giants will invest at least $100 billion in the South American country.
Trump met with top oil industry executives Friday afternoon in an effort to encourage U.S. oil companies to invest in Venezuela. During this meeting, ExxonMobil CEO Darren Woods Said This to Trump Now Venezuela is “uninvestable”.
ConocoPhillips And ExxonMobil left Venezuela after its government, led by President Hugo Chávez, nationalized the country’s oil sector as well as several other key industries. Both companies have filed arbitration cases against Venezuela seeking billions of dollars in compensation for assets expropriated by the government.
Chevron is the only major American oil company currently operating in Venezuela thanks to a special license issued by the Trump administration.
In his Friday order, Trump cited the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 and the National Emergencies Act of 1976 as legal justification for saving Venezuelan oil revenues in U.S. accounts.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from CNBC.
