SECURITY: Rubio Outlines '3-Fold' Process To Leverage VEN Oil To Enact Change
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has outlined to reporters a “three-fold process” to leverage control over Venezuelan oil to dictate the terms of new administration in the country, following a classified briefing with Senators. He notes that he is unable to discuss “a lot of operational details.” LINK
- Rubio says the first step is “stabilizing Venezuela” to prevent the country from “descending into chaos.” He says two tankers seized today were part of the broader “quarantine” process to leverage control over Venezuelan oil. He notes that the US is in the midst of “executing a deal to take 30 and 50 million barrels of oil," that will be sold at market rates and controlled by the US.
- Rubio notes that the second phase involves “recovery,” ensuring that Western companies have fair access to the Venezuelan market to rebuild business and civil society. He notes that the third phase is “transition,” without providing additional details.
- Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said, speaking before Rubio, “we need answers” and said a number of things discussed in the briefing were “very troubling.” Schumer said he is “totally dissatisfied” with what the administration “might be doing in Greenland, as well as in Colombia, Mexico, and other countries.”
- Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT), who yesterday called on Democrats to leverage a government shutdown to force through a bill curbing the Trump administration’s power to use military force abroad, described the plan as “insane” and predicted more chaos in the coming days.
- Murphy said, “they’re talking about stealing Venezuela’s oil… to leverage micromanaging the country…”
- On Greenland, Rubio declines to take military action off the table and says he will be meeting with representatives from Denmark and Greenland next week: "We will have conversations with them then."
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SECURITY: US-Greenland Joint Statement Shows Little Sign Of Previous Rancour
The US-Greenland joint committee has issued a statement following a meeting earlier today in the Greenlandic capital, Nuuk. The two sides claim to have "reaffirmed our commitment to a strong and forward-looking relationship based on mutual respect and grounded in shared interests and practical cooperation. We discussed priorities for continued collaboration on areas of mutual interest. The United States and Greenland look forward to building on this momentum in the year ahead and strengthening the ties that support a secure and prosperous Arctic region."
- Compared to the 2024 statement, conducted under the Biden administration, the 2025 statement is noticeably briefer and more vague, with nothing in the way of concrete areas of cooperation that were identified 14 months ago. The last meeting took place before incumbent US President Donald Trump's aggressive demands in early 2025, demanding Denmark transfer sovereignty of Greenland to the US on national security grounds, sparking a significant deterioration in Danish-US relations and condemnation from Denmark's European allies.
- Nevertheless, the fact that the statement talks of cooperation and shared interests marks a notable calming of rhetoric from when the issue of Greenland's sovereignty threatened to boil over at the start of the year.
- A trilateral meeting of the 'permanent committee' involving the US, Greenland, and Denmark is also set to take place, with the new US ambassador to Denmark, Paypal co-founder Kenneth Howery and Greenland's Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt taking part (Denmark has not confirmed who will participate from its side yet).
OPTIONS: Larger FX Option Pipeline
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US TSY OPTIONS: Mar'26 10Y Vol Buyer
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