U.S. President Donald Trump has reversed a ban on Chevron's operations in Venezuela, just two months after his administration reimposed it. The move allows the American oil giant to resume oil production and exports from the South American nation, restoring activity that had been halted following the initial reinstatement of the ban earlier this year.
On Friday, the Trump administration reissued Chevron’s license to operate in Venezuela. The reversal follows a U.S.-Venezuela prisoner exchange and a new deportation agreement under which Caracas has agreed to accept repatriated Venezuelan migrants.
The original restrictions were lifted in 2022 by President Joe Biden’s administration in response to the energy fallout from U.S. sanctions on Russian oil following the invasion of Ukraine. But in February, just weeks after returning to office, Trump reinstated the ban, ordering Western companies to wind down operations in Venezuela by the end of May as part of a new “maximum pressure” strategy—mirroring his hardline approach toward Iran.
Despite the renewed sanctions, Venezuela’s oil production and exports unexpectedly rose by roughly 10% in the weeks that followed, largely due to increased purchases by China. Chinese firms quickly stepped in to replace Western operators, signing contracts with Venezuela’s state-run oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PDVSA). Among them were China Concord Petroleum and Anhui Guangda Mining, which began servicing oil wells and boosting output.
The Trump administration’s reversal is seen by analysts as a concession to geopolitical and economic realities. Venezuela’s resilience to sanctions and growing strategic partnership with China appear to have outweighed the goals of the “maximum pressure” campaign. The move also reflects ongoing tensions within the Trump administration between hardliners and moderates who favor engagement and compromise.
In 2019, Trump recognized opposition leader Juan Guaidó as Venezuela’s legitimate president and backed a failed coup attempt aimed at unseating President Nicolás Maduro. In the 2024 presidential election, the Biden administration supported opposition candidate Edmundo González, recognizing him as president-elect, though stopping short of officially deeming him Venezuela’s legitimate leader.