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US President Donald Trump has said that both India and China are free to buy oil from Venezuela, indicating a shift in Washington’s approach even as it tightens pressure on Iran and Russia. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump claimed India had already moved ahead with an understanding to source Venezuelan crude, while China was also welcome to enter the market.

“China is welcome to come in and make a great deal on oil. We've already made a deal. India is coming in, and they're going to be buying Venezuelan oil as opposed to buying it from Iran. So, we've already made the concept of the deal," foreign media quoted him as saying.

He reiterated the point several times, underlining that New Delhi’s purchases would replace Iranian oil imports.

“We've already made a deal. India is coming in and they're going to be buying Venezuelan oil as opposed to buying it from Iran. We've already made a deal. India is coming in and they're going, we've already made that deal, the concept of the deal. But China's welcome to come in and buy oil.”

The latest statements come a day after reports that Washington has informed New Delhi it can soon resume purchases of Venezuelan oil, despite having imposed tariffs on India last year for doing so.

Also Read: ‘We just took it back’: Trump says Venezuela operation is long-term reset centred on oil and security

According to foreign media, the move is aimed at helping India replace Russian crude imports as the US intensifies efforts to cut Moscow’s oil revenues. India had earlier pledged to reduce Russian oil purchases after the US raised tariffs linked to those imports. The country is now on track to lower Russian crude intake by several hundred thousand barrels per day in the coming months, the report claimed.

Earlier, Trump revealed that Venezuela had offered the US a massive oil shipment worth over $5 billion, which Washington agreed to accept. Addressing reporters during an event marking the renaming of Southern Boulevard to Donald Trump Boulevard, he said Caracas was facing storage constraints and urgently needed to offload crude.

“We're dealing with the new president. We're dealing with a lot of the people who are running the country...They said, we have 50 million barrels of oil, and we have to get it processed immediately because we have no room. Will you take it? I said, we'll take it. It's equivalent to $5.2 billion.”

Also Read: $4.2 billion Venezuelan oil shipment on the way to US, says Trump

Trump also praised ties with Venezuela’s interim government, which was formed after US forces captured former president Nicolas Maduro in a military operation earlier this year. “We've had a great relationship with the people who are currently the interim president and everybody else. A lot of pressure has been released,” he said.

Following Maduro’s capture, Trump had stated that the US would effectively oversee Venezuela during the transition period and would require full access to its oil and other resources.

Trump’s remarks align with a recent report by New York-based outlet Semafor, which said the US has already completed its first sale of Venezuelan oil valued at $500 million. According to the report, proceeds from the sale are being held in bank accounts controlled by the US government. An administration official cited in the report said the main account is located in Qatar.

Trump had imposed 25 per cent tariffs on countries buying Venezuelan oil, including India, in March last year, as part of a broader campaign against the Maduro government. US forces captured Maduro on January 3, following which Washington began directing the Caracas administration and signalled plans to control Venezuela’s oil industry indefinitely.

The push to redirect Venezuelan crude to India is also part of a wider US strategy to curb oil revenues funding Russia’s war in Ukraine. Trump also said on Saturday that China, too, was welcome to strike a deal with the US to buy Venezuelan oil.