U.S. President Donald Trump answers questions from members of the media during a meeting with oil and gas company executives in the East Room of the White House on January 9, 2026 in Washington, DC.
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US President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday aimed at blocking the seizure of Venezuelan oil revenues held in US Treasury accounts.
The executive order states that the proceeds held in foreign government deposit funds are “kept solely for sovereign purposes” and that any attempt by a court to seize the funds would “severely harm the national security and foreign policy” of the United States.
The order, which declared a national emergency, said the funds were sovereign property of Venezuela controlled by the United States for government and diplomatic purposes and were not assets subject to private claims. The order states that the use of judicial proceedings against the fund would impede efforts to “ensure economic and political stability in Venezuela.”
President Trump signed the executive order nearly a week after U.S. forces detained Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Syria Flores, in Caracas. Both men have been charged with drug trafficking and have pleaded not guilty.
Since the military operation, President Trump has said the two countries are “working together well” on rebuilding Venezuela’s oil and gas infrastructure and that the U.S. oil giant will invest at least $100 billion in the South American country.
President Trump met with major oil industry executives on Friday afternoon to encourage U.S. oil companies to invest in Venezuela. At that meeting, exxon mobil CEO Darren Woods told President Trump that Venezuela is currently “uninvestable.”
conocophilips and exxon mobil It withdrew from Venezuela after the Venezuelan government under President Hugo Chávez nationalized the oil sector along with several other major industries. The companies have filed an arbitration suit against Venezuela, seeking billions of dollars in compensation for assets confiscated by the government.
chevron The company is the only major U.S. oil company currently operating in Venezuela through a special license issued by the Trump administration.
In Friday’s executive order, President Trump cited the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 and the National Emergencies Act of 1976 as legal justifications for protecting Venezuelan oil revenues in U.S. accounts.
The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
