The Trump administration is in advanced negotiations with Venezuela's interim government to secure long-term US access to a significant portion of Venezuelan oil fields, with talks described by insiders as occurring at the highest levels of both governments. The prospective agreement — reportedly led by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Venezuelan acting president Delcy Rodríguez — would cover more than a dozen fields, including sites in the Orinoco Belt and Lake Maracaibo, encompassing roughly 90 billion barrels of proven reserves; a lease model is under consideration, with fields to be allocated to American producers through auction. The deal, which could more than double US proven oil reserves, faces potential legal hurdles under Venezuela's constitution, which reserves core oil industry activities for the state, but proponents argue it would serve both American energy security goals and Venezuela's economic recovery.