Trump claims Aberdeen celebrates as new UK leader vows to open North Sea oil

Trump the president said in a Truth Social post that Britain's new prime minister would open North Sea drilling and remove wind turbines near Aberdeen, though Andy Burnham does not hold that office.

First Published: July 19, 2026, 10:36 AM ET

WASHINGTON D.C. — Donald Trump claimed the people of Aberdeen were celebrating a British pledge to open North Sea oil in a Truth Social post on July 19, 2026 at 2:27 PM ET.

Here is the full post on truthsocial: “The People of Aberdeen, in Scotland, are dancing in the streets because the new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, has stated that he will be opening up, all the way, the invaluable North Sea Oil! It is one of the Greatest Sources of quality Oil on Earth, has hundreds of years of Capacity left, with much not even found yet, and will make the United Kingdom, from a Poverty Stricken Disaster, to one of the Richest Countries anywhere in the World! Britain pays Norway Billions of Dollars a year to buy its Oil, which they get from a less valuable part of the North Sea — How ridiculous is that! Also, word is that the UK is going to move the old and horrible looking windmills, which loom over and destroy the City of Aberdeen. That will be a big day for the Country, and will be very much appreciated by everybody. Such great potential in the UK, but it all starts with OPENING NORTH SEA OIL. WE LOVE YOU SCOTLAND! Trump”

The president named Andy Burnham as the new prime minister, though Burnham serves as mayor of Greater Manchester and holds no national office. Trump praised the North Sea as one of the greatest sources of quality oil on Earth and predicted the reserves would transform the United Kingdom into one of the richest countries in the world.

Trump also asserted that Britain buys billions of dollars of oil each year from Norway, which extracts crude from what he called a less valuable part of the North Sea. He further claimed the United Kingdom planned to move wind turbines that he said loom over the city of Aberdeen.

The stakes reach across Britain’s energy economy. Higher North Sea output could benefit oil producers and the port city of Aberdeen, long known as Europe’s oil capital, while a windfarm rollback would unsettle the renewable operators that dominate Scottish coastal generation. Consumers and the Treasury would feel the effects through fuel prices and tax receipts.

The North Sea has anchored British energy since the 1970s, when the first commercial fields came online and turned Aberdeen into an industry hub. Successive governments have taxed the sector heavily, and recent policy favored a managed decline of new licenses in line with climate targets.

For the average U.S. reader, the dispute carries little direct impact, though global crude supply shifts can influence gasoline prices at home. A larger flow of North Sea oil would add to world supply, a factor that helps set prices from Texas pumps to European refineries.

Has this happened before? Trump has repeatedly urged Britain to expand North Sea drilling and remove wind turbines, including near his golf properties in Scotland. He fought a years-long legal battle against an offshore windfarm visible from his Aberdeenshire course, a case he lost.

The next move rests with the elected British government, which sets licensing and energy policy through its ministers. No date for any change to North Sea oil licensing or wind turbine removal has been announced.

Trump’s clash with Scottish wind power isn’t the first time he has come to blows with the country over energy. In 2015, he lost a UK Supreme Court challenge against the European Offshore Wind Deployment Centre off Aberdeen Bay, according to Encyclopaedia Britannica. Judges upheld the 11-turbine project, and it began generating power in 2018. The defeat marked one of several setbacks for Trump’s Scottish ventures, which he had linked to his personal opposition to offshore wind.