Baba UmarPresident Donald Trump has said the United States has taken in roughly $13 billion — or more — from Venezuela, enough to have "paid for that war many times," and indicated the funds are directed toward running the country, including potentially the military, subject to congressional approval.
Trump, speaking with reporters aboard Air Force One on Monday as he travelled to Michigan to tour a General Motors’ facility, added "that'll happen with Iran also."
Responding to a reporter’s question about reports that the US had taken in $13 billion from Venezuela and where the money was going, Trump replied: "13 billion from Venezuela? I think even more than that. No, Venezuela. We paid for that war many times. And that’ll happen with Iran also. We paid for the war many times."
Pressed repeatedly on the destination of the funds, Trump said the money "goes toward running the country" and "it can go to the military."
He noted that "Congress has to approve it," adding that lawmakers "don’t like approving money for the military" and prefer spending on "things that shouldn’t be done."
He reiterated: "We're taking in a lot of money, billions and billions of dollars from Venezuela. That’ll happen with Iran, too."
Deal with Iran
On Iranian assets, Trump said the US would use them to cover damages caused by Iran rather than paying shipping companies directly.
When a reporter asked whether Iranian assets under US control would be used to pay for damages to ships hit in the Strait, Trump answered: "No. No. We’re going to use Iran’s money to pay for the damage they did."
Trump also remarked that "no other president can say that for a long time" regarding recovering costs many times over from such operations, and said the US now has "a very good relationship with Venezuela."
The US took control of Venezuela’s oil exports after capturing former President Nicolas Maduro in a military operation on January 3.
Venezuela has seen a rebound this year in its crude production and exports to the US and Europe after Washington eased sanctions and foreign companies expanded oil and gas projects after the ouster of Maduro.
The US has reportedly controlled the sale of on the order of over 150–200 million barrels of Venezuelan oil since early 2026, generating over $13 billion in revenues that Washington collects and largely directs.
Trump also said that there is a "good chance" of reaching a deal with Iran, but warned that Washington would resume military operation if negotiations fail.
"They want to meet, and we are meeting. We'll what happens. There is a chance we can make a deal," Trump told reporters.
"Without what we did, they wouldn’t even be talking to us," he added.
