Venezuela will release an "important number" of political prisoners, including both citizens and foreigners,the South American country's top legislator said on Thursday.
The big picture: The announcement,from National Assembly president Jorge Rodríguez, could signal that the regime is softening its long-standing limits on political dissent — a move the opposition in Venezuela has demanded for years.
President Trump's decision to yank the U.S. from UN climate change agencies will set back international progress on addressing the climate, observers say.
Why it matters: The U.S. is the world's second-largest emitter of greenhouse gases after China and provides much of the scientific heft addressing the problem.
The head of the U.S. oil industry's leading lobbying group on Thursday predicted "tremendous interest" in Venezuela from American companies — but only if "big requirements" around security and other areas are met.
Why it matters: President Trump is hoping that U.S. producers invest in reviving output from Venezuela's broken-down oil fields.
AI and military needs could worsen what's already shaping up as a looming copper supply gap in coming decades, new analysis finds.
Why it matters: Copper supply is foundational to energy transition including EVs and renewables — even as traditional uses like construction and machinery grow, as you can see above.
President Trump on Wednesday announced plans to withdraw the U.S. from dozens of global organizations, including the United Nations climate change agencies.
Why it matters: It's among the biggest and most extreme steps this administration has taken to retreat from the global stage and pull back foreign spending.
The big picture: While his predecessors sought to distance themselves from the Monroe Doctrine that the U.S. established to combat European interference in the Americas, Trump's eagerness for a 21st century version of the policy underscores his wider goal to "restore American pre-eminence in the Western Hemisphere."
The U.S. Coast Guard seized a Russian-flagged oil tanker on Wednesday after a cat-and-mouse chase across the Atlantic, despite the vessel being shadowed by a Russian submarine and Moscow publicly opposing its capture.
The big picture: It was one of two seizures early Wednesday morning as part of the enforcement of President Trump's blockade on sanctioned tankers carrying Venezuelan oil. The capture of the Russian-linked Bella-1 was particularly dramatic given the geopolitical implications.
Pundits and politicians are getting ahead of themselves in crowing about how U.S. companies, particularly in the energy sector, could profit from this past weekend's events in Venezuela.
The big picture: No one knows how this will play out, nor even if the Trump administration has a solid strategy beyond the grab-and-go on Nicolás Maduro.
The U.S. plans to directly control Venezuelan oil sales and revenue via U.S.-controlled accounts, but those moves will benefit the country's people as well, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Wednesday.
Why it matters: His comments are among the Trump administration's most expansive descriptions of its approach to Venezuela's oil sector since the toppling of President Nicolás Maduro.
Hunger is breeding creativity in the race to fuel AI data centers and meet rising U.S. power demand — with repurposed naval reactors and aircraft engines among the latest examples.
Why it matters: Companies are exploring fresh ways to repurpose existing tech used in other sectors, even as more familiar sources — like traditional gas, solar, and nuclear plants — play starring roles in the data center boom.
Forget talk about elections and democracy in Venezuela. The Trump administration has a simple goal there: Back a pro-U.S. government — and prop it up with millions of barrels of Venezuelan oil.
Why it matters: The plan hinges on the U.S. taking de facto control of oil production in Venezuela, which has the largest crude reserves in the world but has been crippled by the twin forces of kleptocracy and U.S. sanctions.
President Trump on Tuesday said that Venezuelan interim authorities will "be turning over" between "30 and 50 MILLION" barrels of oil to the U.S.
The big picture: Trump said on Truth Social the sanctioned oil will be sold at market price, and the resulting revenue will be controlled "by me, as President of the United States" to "ensure it is used to benefit the people of Venezuela and the United States!" — without elaborating further.
The Trump administration is pressing Venezuela's interim government to dismiss all suspected spies and other intelligence agents from China, Russia, Cuba and Iran from the South American country, a U.S. official told Axios.
The big picture: The move, which does not apply to regular diplomatic personnel, marks the administration's latest effortto force the oil-rich nation to meet U.S. demands following last week's raid that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.
President Trump will meet Friday with U.S. oil executives at the White House as he presses the industry to invest in reviving Venezuela's production, multiple sources tell Axios.
Why it matters: Boosting output from the nation's dilapidated oil infrastructure will require massive outlays.
