Washington – The Trump administration on Wednesday imposed sanctions on eight more Venezuelan officials, including the brother of late socialist leader, Hugo Chavez.
The sanctions are to punish them for their roles in President Nicolas Maduro’s creation of a new legislative superbody, U.S. officials said.
The new measures announced by the U.S. Treasury Department will freeze the U.S. assets of the targeted individuals, ban them from travel to the U.S. and prohibit Americans from doing business with them.
Washington slammed sanctions on Maduro on July 31, following similar action against 13 Venezuelan officials on July 26.
The Trump administration slammed financial sanctions on Maduro on Monday after a weekend election that gave the South American country’s ruling party virtually unlimited powers.
The sanctions freeze any assets Maduro may have in U.S. jurisdictions and bar Americans from doing business with him.
“By sanctioning Maduro, the U.S. makes clear our opposition to the policies of his regime and our support for the people of Venezuela who seek to return their country to a full and prosperous.’’
When Maduro was elected in 2013 following Chávez’s death, Nicolás Maduro continued the majority of existing economic policies of his predecessor Hugo Chávez.
When entering the presidency, President Maduro’s Venezuela faced a high inflation rate and large shortages of goods that was left over from the previous policies of President Chávez. (Reuters/NAN)