United States President Donald Trump said the country has made about 10 times more from Venezuelan oil than it has spent on the war with Iran. He made the statement during a campaign event in Florida for Republican candidates ahead of the midterm elections for Congress.
Trump took aim at Democratic Representative Roh Hanna, who has questioned the cost of the war. “He said I spent $25 billion on this war. But he didn't mention that we made about 10 times more from Venezuela. "You have to look at the balance between revenue and expenditure," the president said.
The Pentagon reports $47.1 billion in expenses
The latest Pentagon estimate provided to Congress puts the cost of the war with Iran at $47.1 billion as of October 16. The data was prepared by the US Central Command and published by the Associated Press and Reuters.
About $29 billion is related to the recovery of spent ammunition. Operating costs are estimated at approximately $11.9 billion, and lost military equipment - about $6 billion. The amount does not include all future costs for base repairs, equipment maintenance and other long-term consequences of the conflict.
No data on reported profits
Publicly available reports on Venezuela confirm that the Trump administration has negotiated access to and control of significant oil resources. In September, the president said the United States had reached an agreement to control 65 billion barrels of Venezuelan oil reserves. The Associated Press, however, did not indicate that the deal has already generated hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue.
Trump has previously claimed that Venezuelan oil has offset the cost of military action in Iran. In his latest statement, he again presented the war as an operation that he said was financially covered by access to Venezuelan oil.
The topic has become part of the pre-election debate about the cost of the war, which continues to affect the budget, fuel prices and the positions of Republicans before the vote on November 3.
Sources: israel.com, apnews.com