U.S. secretly negotiating deal to let Venezuela sell more oil if it takes more deportees

The Trump administration is quietly negotiating a high-stakes deal with the Nicolás Maduro regime to allow Chevron to continue exporting Venezuelan oil to the U.S. in exchange for Caracas accepting the return of thousands of Venezuelan migrants likely to lose their legal status in the coming weeks, sources in Washington and Caracas familiar with the talks told the Miami Herald.

While much of the conversations have focused around the potential extension of a U.S. license to allow Chevron to continue operating in Venezuela, Maduro is seeking significant political and economic concessions, the sources said.

And while accounts differ on how close the parties are to finalizing an agreement, there is consensus that President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Richard Grenell, has been leading behind-the-scenes discussions with key figures in the Maduro government.

A Caracas-based source told the Herald that under the current terms being considered, Maduro would remain in power and grant broad oil and mining concessions to U.S. companies, including Chevron. The oil giant, which holds significant assets in Venezuela, has been constrained by U.S. sanctions that have prevented full development of its holdings.

In return, Maduro is seeking to be removed from the U.S. Treasury sanctions list and to have drug-trafficking charges against him in the U.S. dropped. Both Maduro and his second in command, Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, are under U.S. indictments for allegedly leading the Los Soles drug cartel.