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María Corina Machado says Venezuela needs more than money after US-Caracas agreement

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María Corina Machado, leader of the Venezuelan opposition and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, stated that Venezuela needs more than financial resources for its reconstruction, after the US signed an agreement to control 20% of the country's oil reserves.
She highlighted the need for transparency, legality and a legitimate democratic government, highlighting that the national heritage belongs to the Venezuelan people, not to an illegitimate regime.

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Why It Matters

Venezuela faces a prolonged political and institutional crisis, with disputes over the legitimacy of the government following the 2024 presidential elections, widely contested by the opposition and international observers. María Corina Machado, opposition leader and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, is in exile in Panama after leaving the country clandestinely in December. The United States signed an agreement with the interim regime of Delcy Rodríguez to control 20% of Venezuelan oil reserves, equivalent to 65 billion barrels in 17 fields.

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The leader of the Venezuelan opposition and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, María Corina Machado, stated this Thursday (3) that Venezuela "needs much more than money", following the unprecedented oil agreement signed between the United States and the interim regime of Delcy Rodríguez.

In a video recorded in exile and published on X, María Corina said that "the oil sector is just one part of the immense reconstruction" of Venezuela, which "requires colossal investments."

"In a country with the dimensions and institutional fragility of Venezuela, no sector can function in isolation," said Machado, who left Caracas clandestinely in December to receive the Nobel Peace Prize and who currently lives in Panama.

US President Donald Trump announced last week the signing of a historic agreement with Caracas, which grants his country 20% of Venezuela's gigantic oil reserves.

The agreement gives the White House control of 65 billion barrels of crude oil in 17 fields located in different regions of the country.

"All of this gives Venezuela extraordinary strategic value, both for US national security and for the stability of the hemisphere. But the heritage of our soil does not belong to an illegitimate regime, it belongs to the Venezuelan people," said María Corina.

After signing agreements with oil multinationals such as Chevron and Eni, on Wednesday (2), in Caracas, Trump and Delcy agreed that the country is not ready to hold elections.

The opposition leader's message was released eight months after the capture of former dictator Nicolás Maduro, in an American military operation.

María Corina defended the alliance with Washington, but stated that the country must work "under the non-negotiable principles of absolute transparency, legality and efficiency."

This, he highlighted, "is only possible with the legitimacy and stability offered by a serious and democratic government."

The opposition and independent observers claim that there was electoral fraud by Maduro in the last presidential elections, in 2024, and claim the victory of Edmundo González, a candidate supported by María Corina. The opposition leader was politically disqualified and could not run on that occasion.

In August, a political dialogue began between the Chavista regime and part of the opposition with a view to a democratic transition, but María Corina was not invited.

The leader promises to return to Venezuela, but experts say that Washington does not welcome her return.

"I know what you are feeling: sadness, anger and this discomfort so recurrent in our history, caused by the fact that someone decides about what is ours, in our name, without taking us into account", stated María Corina in her message, highlighting the "deep concern about the implications this has" for the future of Venezuela.

What to Watch

AI outlook — possibilities, not facts

The Venezuelan opposition will intensify international pressure to review or cancel the US-Caracas agreement on oil control.
Likely · Within weeks
New negotiations between the Chavista regime and sectors of the opposition will take place, but María Corina Machado will probably continue to be excluded from the ongoing political dialogue.
Very likely · Within months

Open Questions

What are the detailed terms of the agreement between the US and the Venezuelan regime over oil control?
How does the Venezuelan opposition plan to respond to the US-Caracas agreement and the exclusion of María Corina Machado from the political dialogue?
What guarantees are there that oil resources will be used for the benefit of the Venezuelan people and not to support the regime?
What is the official position of other countries and international organizations on the agreement between the US and Venezuela?

María Corina Machado says Venezuela needs more than money after US-Caracas agreement

Quick Look

María Corina Machado, leader of the Venezuelan opposition and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, stated that Venezuela needs more than financial resources for its reconstruction, after the US signed an agreement to control 20% of the country's oil reserves.
She highlighted the need for transparency, legality and a legitimate democratic government, highlighting that the national heritage belongs to the Venezuelan people, not to an illegitimate regime.