At Texas rally, Trump hints Venezuela could become the 51st US state
US President Donald Trump has hinted that Venezuela could be included as the 51st state of the United States. At an election rally in Corpus Christi, Texas, he showed a tanker carrying one million barrels of oil brought from Venezuela.
At the rally on Tuesday, 27 October, Trump claimed the oil deal made with Venezuela's interim government was the biggest oil victory in history.
Speaking at the rally, Trump said Venezuela would become a prosperous country and that, who knows, perhaps very soon it would become the 51st state of the United States.
Trump has previously also spoken about the possibility of Greenland, Canada and Mexico joining the United States. His remarks on Venezuela came after those earlier statements.
In January, Venezuela's longtime president Nicolas Maduro was detained in a US military operation in Venezuela. After that, Washington and Caracas reached an oil deal.
Trump claimed that under the deal, several hundred crore barrels of oil would be supplied to the United States. He also said the United States was getting this oil at no cost to American taxpayers.
Fuel prices in the United States have risen after the Strait of Hormuz was closed because of the war with Iran. About 20 percent of the world's total oil supply is transported through this strait.
Trump claimed that receiving Venezuela's oil would soon bring fuel prices in the United States down significantly.
Critics, however, allege that while the administration has been active over the oil deal, its initiative to restore democracy in Venezuela is not clear. No election has been held in the country since Maduro was detained.
The US midterm elections will be held next week. Opinion polls indicate Trump's popularity is falling. His foreign policy, including the war with Iran and tariffs imposed on goods from various countries, is also facing criticism.
