The US will "manage" Venezuela until the political situation there stabilizes after overthrow of the regime Nicolas Maduro. About this on press conference said US President Donald Trump.
"We will lead the country until we can ensure a safe, orderly and prudent transition. We do not want anyone else to step in and end up with the same situation," — he declared.
Trump also made no secret of his keen interest in Venezuelan oil. He particularly mentioned the history of the forced nationalization of the oil industry in Venezuela in the 1970s and 2000s, in which American companies made significant investments.
"We built the Venezuelan oil industry with American talent, and the socialist regime forcibly stole it from us. We will bring in our big American oil companies – the biggest in the world – who will spend billions of dollars rebuilding the destroyed infrastructure, the oil infrastructure, and start making money for the country," — said the US president.
At the same time, Trump promised to make the people of Venezuela "rich, independent and safe."
At the same time, the American leader threatened to continue and expand the military operation if Venezuela did not cooperate.
“We are prepared to launch a second, much larger attack if necessary. The American armada remains in place, and the United States retains all military options until the US demands are fully met and satisfied. All Venezuelan political and military figures must understand: what happened to Maduro could happen to them,” — said Trump
The US President also confirmed the de facto restoration of the "Monroe Doctrine" - the principle according to which Washington considers the Western Hemisphere, and in particular South America, to be its sphere of influence and interests.
"The Monroe Doctrine is a big deal, but we have surpassed it far—far beyond. Under our new national security strategy, American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never again be questioned," - he said.
At the same time, Trump joked that US foreign policy is now called the "Donro Doctrine" - after Donald.
