President Trump has dispatched Energy Secretary Chris Wright to Venezuela to deliver the message that Venezuela, and the entire Western Hemisphere, can be transformed.

Through energy and commerce, President Trump has created the unique opportunity to transform Venezuela, the United States, and the Western Hemisphere as a whole.

This is what true American leadership looks like. pic.twitter.com/aBuvS9RNL6

— Secretary Chris Wright (@SecretaryWright) February 9, 2026

Wright delivered the message from Trump that the plan is to make the Americas great again.

.@SecretaryWright in Venezuela: “I bring today a message from President Trump. He is passionately committed to absolutely transforming the relationship between the United States and Venezuela — part of a broader agenda to Make the Americas Great Again.” pic.twitter.com/OSlGzEJGjO

— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) February 11, 2026

In a related move, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued new licenses to supply services and items to Venezuela’s oil industry, and excluded Russia, China, and other countries from eligibility. The licenses covered oil and its transport, ports and airport facilities, and goods, technology and services related to oil or gas exploration, development, or production in Venezuela. Each license includes a paragraph excluding certain nations that reads:

Any transaction involving a person located in or organized under the laws of the Russian Federation, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the Republic of Cuba, the People’s Republic of China, or any entity that is owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by or in a joint venture with such persons

Reuters has reported that Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called the restrictions “blatant discrimination.”