Interim authorities in Venezuela are seeking to include U.S.-seized oil in ongoing negotiations, a sign they recognize cooperation with Washington is the only path to avoiding economic collapse, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday morning.
"One of the ships seized, that oil in the Caribbean, you know what the interim authorities are asking for? They want the oil seized to be part of this deal," Rubio told reporters between Senate and House briefings on the recent actions in Venezuela, including the capture and arraignment of deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
"They understand the only way to move oil and generate revenue and not have economic collapse is working with the United States," added Rubio.
Speaking during a quick press gaggle, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the enforcement actions demonstrate that "only the United States of America can accomplish" such operations, calling the U.S. an "administration of action" and adding that Venezuela and the rest of the world are taking notice.
The U.S. has a three-step plan for Venezuela that will begin with stabilizing the country, overseeing the country's recovery, and finally a transition, according to Rubio.
"We don't want it descending into chaos," Rubio said.
"The second phase will be a phase that we call recovery, and that is ensuring that American, Western and other companies have access to the Venezuelan market in a way that's fair.
"Also, at the same time, begin to create the process of reconciliation nationally within Venezuela, so that the opposition forces can be amnestied and released and from prisons or brought back to the country, and begin to rebuild civil society," Rubio added. "And then the third phase, of course, will be one of transition."
On the issue of President Donald Trump's desire to annex Greenland for his "Donroe Doctrine," a play on the age-old U.S. Monroe Doctrine, Rubio said he plans to meet with Denmark officials next week.
"If the president identifies a threat to the national security of the United States, every president retains the option to address it through military means," Rubio said.
"As a diplomat, which is what I am now, and what we work on, we always prefer to settle it in different ways – that included in Venezuela."
Earlier Wednesday, U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matt Whitaker told Newsmax that Denmark and NATO cannot adequately secure Greenland without the U.S.
"This whole discussion is about the security and the defense of North America, the continent of North America, and therefore Greenland," Whitaker told Wednesday's "National Report" just minutes after President Donald Trump issued a scathing review of NATO's inability to keep Russia and China at bay without the U.S.
"And obviously, President Trump and his advisers do not believe that the country is properly secured."
Greenland is not a country but a self-governing territory under the home rule of Denmark, and the Trump administration has spoken extensively about expanding U.S. influence over the strategic North Atlantic territory.
"We are obviously having a lot of discussions with the Kingdom of Denmark on these topics," Whitaker told host Shaun Kraisman. "And, you know, I do not doubt for a minute that we will be able to get to a resolution that's satisfactory to both sides.
"But ultimately, you know, as the ice thaws and as the routes in the Arctic and the High North open up, you know, Greenland becomes a very serious security risk for the mainland of the United States of America."
Reuters contributed to this report.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.