Trump: US has sold over $13 billion of Venezuelan oil since Maduro's capture

President Donald Trump said Monday that the United States has collected more than $13 billion from the sale of Venezuelan crude oil since the overthrow of former President Nicolás Maduro.

The U.S. seized control of Venezuela's oil exports after capturing Maduro in a military raid on January 3. Trump was responding to a question about a Financial Times report that estimated how much money his administration had collected from the sales.

"$13 billion from Venezuela? I think even more than that," the president told reporters aboard Air Force One as he traveled to Michigan to tour a General Motors facility. "We've paid for that war many times over."

Trump said the money is used to run Venezuela. "We're taking in a lot of money — billions and billions of dollars from Venezuela," Trump said.

Key Details

• Total revenue: More than $13 billion from Venezuelan oil sales
• Oil volume sold: Approximately 150 million barrels since January (per Energy Secretary Chris Wright)
• Auditor: KPMG conducts ongoing audits of all expenditures
• Funds location: Held in a Citibank account (per Secretary of State Marco Rubio)

Governance and Oversight

The U.S. has largely left the Venezuelan government in place after ousting Maduro. Washington has been closely cooperating with interim President Delcy Rodríguez, who served as vice president under Maduro.

Democrats in Congress have pressed the administration to disclose:

• How much money has been collected from the sales
• How the funds are spent
• How the program is monitored

Financial Management

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Congress in June that the oil sales are audited by KPMG. The money is held in a Citibank account, Rubio said.

"It's an ongoing audit, so it's not a once-a-year audit, it's on every expenditure, every single disbursement is audited by KPMG," Rubio told Congress.

The Trump administration initially deposited $500 million in sales to an account in Qatar that was controlled by the U.S. government, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in February. The U.S. subsequently set up a Treasury account and stopped sending money to the Qatar account, he said.

State Department official Michael Kozak told Congress in April that around $3 billion had been disbursed from the Treasury account. Kozak said the money was used to:

• Pay salaries of Venezuela's government workers
• Buy supplies for the nation's oil industry
• Other approved uses

Rubio authorizes the disbursement of the funds under an executive order issued by Trump on January 9. The president's order states that the money is the property of the Venezuelan government held in a custodial capacity by the U.S.

Image credits: Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images; Jose Isaac Bula | Anadolu | Getty Images