Is Drugs Just an Excuse? "The Real Reason the U.S. Targeted Maduro Is Oil"

"Venezuela, the World's Top Oil Reserve Holder"
"Exports 80% to China...Cooperating with Russia as Well"

The core background behind the United States' arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is being identified as "oil."

On January 7, Park Jungho, a professor at the Graduate School of Industrial Studies at Myongji University, stated on CBS Radio's "Park Sungtae's News Show," "Venezuela ranks overwhelmingly first in the world in terms of oil reserves," adding, "The largest oil customer for Venezuela used to be the United States." He explained, "Until the 1990s, the United States imported more than 20% of its total oil imports from Venezuela."

Donald Trump, President of the United States, on the 3rd (local time), revealed recent photos of Nicolas Maduro, President of Venezuela, who was arrested by the U.S. military in a surprise military operation, on the social networking service (SNS) Truth Social. Trump Truth Social account

Professor Park continued, "The refineries in the U.S. Gulf Coast are finely tuned to process the heavy crude oil mainly produced in Venezuela," and added, "However, since the 2000s, the United States has not been able to secure a stable supply of crude oil from Venezuela, so it has been importing oil from other countries such as Canada and Mexico to keep its facilities running." He further explained, "U.S. oil companies like ExxonMobil had made massive investments in Venezuela's oil fields, but former Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez nationalized them, forcing the companies to withdraw without compensation."

He analyzed that the direct cause of this situation lies in oil, not drugs. Professor Park said, "Many people may wonder why the United States, which is also the world's top oil producer, would act this way over oil," and explained, "Many refineries that were originally designed to process Venezuelan crude oil have remained idle for years, but now there is a chance to utilize them again."

He also mentioned political and diplomatic factors as background. Professor Park said, "Venezuela is a representative pro-China country, and it is known that currently about 80% of its oil exports go to China," adding, "Recently, Russia has also been expanding its investments in Venezuela's state-run oil company." He explained that Russia established a joint venture with Venezuela, securing a 40% stake, which has opened the way for Venezuela to restore its oil production.

He added, "Guyana, which is located right next to Venezuela, discovered offshore oil fields, resulting in an economic growth rate exceeding 60% in 2022 and over 30% the following year," and continued, "In a country with a population of less than one million, the discovery of massive oil fields has brought enormous economic wealth. The Guyana oil fields are offshore and are practically being shared with Venezuela due to their proximity."