As climate pressure rises and markets shift, oil continues to mold US foreign policy both long term and short term. Since the late 19th century, oil has become a major market in the US. When Watt’s steam engine kickstarted the industrial revolution, coal was the center source of energy guiding urbanization. However when supply of whale oil diminished, kerosene made from crude oil infiltrated US markets. From there, oil began to be exported to London and other foreign powers. With the increase in consumption, large oil companies emerged. After John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil dominated the industry, owning around 90% of refineries around the US, the US government sued the company for the violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act, stating that the oil producer held a monopoly on the oil industry, later winning the case. Following the court ruling in the favor of the government, Standard Oil was broken into many companies that are still relevant today, including Chevron, Mobil, Exxon and many others.
Moving into the 20th century, the US built relations with major exporting countries including Saudi Arabia and multiple European states. In 1960, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Nations (OPEC) was formed, although, initially, the coalition held little influence on the US government. During the Cold War, scarcity ideology rapidly shifted sentiments regarding oil. Many believed that oil weapons sourced from Arab countries would destroy the US economy. The CIA determined that an oil-deprived USSR would capture oil production in Iran. President Carter then introduced the Carter doctrine with support of the National Security Council, stating that Persian oil would be protected by the US by any means. After the occurrence of many oil spills, most notably the EXXON Valdez oil spill off the coast of Alaska, drawing backlash and fueling environmental movements aiming to limit offshore drilling. In response, the Oil Pollution Act was passed by Congress, creating a tiered plan to facilitate responses to spills, in addition to the establishment of a trust that reserves $1 billion for each incident. Between 1993 and 2005, demand for oil reached a high of 20.8 million barrels being consumed each day, increasing significantly from the initial 3.6 million. In 2005, the Energy Policy Act was passed, providing different incentives to encourage alternative transportation fuel while simultaneously mandating that billions of gallons of renewable fuel be integrated with gasoline.
Ahead of the 2016 election, the “drill, baby, drill” mindset was widely popularized by the republican party. Donald Trump, following his election to his first term in office, repealed many of Obama’s policies on Oil along with withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, which had mandated the reduction of greenhouse emissions and committed to the reduction of carbon emissions to net zero by 2050. During his 2nd term, Oil has seemingly become a significant priority among the Trump Administration. Early 2025, the White House declared that it would bypass all environmental rules in order to jumpstart mass production of oil and gas infrastructure, painting fossil fuels as the key to power. The US then withdrew from multiple UN organizations committed to climate efforts, such as the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. The administration’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” allocated $18 billion worth of tax breaks to large gas companies and killed the construction of wind energy plants and other sustainable energy efforts.
Following the new year, Trump announced that the government had detained Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3rd 2026. Initially, the motivation of the attack was claimed to be on the basis to prevent the flow of illegal drugs and to force a regime change from President Maduro, who the administration claimed was acquiring offensive weapons and threatening national security. However, the president later justified the actions on claims that the country “unilaterally seized and sold American oil, American assets and American platforms, costing [The US] billions and billions of dollars". Following the attack, Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared that around 30 to 50 million barrels of oil will be exported by the US. In addition to the capture, the US military struck multiple boats across Caribbean and Pacific coasts, although speculations arose that cargo raids had not been transporting any sorts of illegal drugs. An oil tanker was also seized, which Trump claimed was carrying oil sectioned by the US, with Trump later announcing an Oil blockade on Venezuela in response. The administration has since backed interim president Delcy Rodriguez, on the demand that she formally submit to us oil claims. Rubio later clarified that the state intended to pressure the Venezuelan government in order to seize full control over the Venezuelan oil industry.
Jeyaretnam, Miranda, and Chad de Guzman. “What’s Happening with the U.S. And Venezuela, Explained.” TIME, Time, 8 Jan. 2026, time.com/7344628/us-venezuela-trump-maduro-oil-drugs-war-explainer-questions-answered/.
“Oil Dependence and U.S. Foreign Policy | Council on Foreign Relations.” Cfr.org, 14 June 2022, www.cfr.org/timelines/oil-dependence-and-us-foreign-policy.
“Oil, Power, and the Climate Stakes of the U.S. Move in Venezuela | Council on Foreign Relations.” Cfr.org, 23 Jan. 2026, www.cfr.org/articles/oil-power-and-the-climate-stakes-of-the-u-s-move-in-venezuela.
Picchi, Aimee. “Trump Says Venezuela Stole American Oil. Here’s What Really Happened.” Cbsnews.com, 9 Jan. 2026, www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-venezuela-oil-assets-theft-explainer/.
Shigenaka, Gary. “The Oil Pollution Act of 1990: A History of Spills and Legislation | NOAA’s Office of Response & Restoration Blog.” Blog.response.restoration.noaa.gov, 17 Aug. 2020, blog.response.restoration.noaa.gov/oil-pollution-act-1990-history-spills-and-legislation.
Stern, Roger. “Oil Scarcity Ideology in US National Security Policy, 1909‐1980.” Program on Energy and Sustainable Development, Feb. 2013, pesd.fsi.stanford.edu/publications/oil_scarcity_ideology_in_us_national_security_policy_19091980. Accessed 29 Jan. 2026.