Donald Trump’s presidential team is beginning to take shape, with Republican Party favourite and US Senator from Florida Marco Rubio having been offered the pivotal role of secretary of state.

According to several US news outlets, the appointment of Rubio – who has publicly called for a stronger US foreign policy – may signal a severe toughening of oil sanctions against Iran and Venezuela.

Rubio has been a vehement critic of Venezuela's socialist president, Nicolas Maduro, and the US authorities have long been suspicious of Maduro, a left-winger and former trade union leader who has been in power since 2013.

Under Trump’s first term, the US placed financial sanctions on Venezuela in the autumn of 2017, which were expanded in 2018.

According to one analyst reported by a US news outlet, Rubio has been a “consistent and strong record as a hawk on Iran, Venezuela and China”, and will happily implement Trump's “plans to exert pressure on Iran's crude exports, nearly all which go to China”.

Another commentator said that Trump, through Rubio, may also try to more strictly enforce 2024’s Stop Harboring Iranian Petroleum Act, which allows for the imposition of punitive measures on foreign ports that process Iranian oil, which is under US sanctions.

Neither Trump nor Rubio have formally announced the appointment as of Thursday morning (14 November), but the returning president is expected to name Rubio in the next 24 hours.

Trump will be inaugurated on 20 January 2025.