US imposes sanctions on Venezuela over political bans on opposition
The US administration is reinstating some sanctions on Venezuela that it had previously suspended, following the Venezuelan Supreme Court's (TSJ) decision to impose a 15-year political ban on opposition leader Maria Corina Machado.
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In a statement, the US Department of State emphasized that the TSJ's decision was met with regret and has raised concerns regarding the elections to be held in Venezuela this year.
Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller also stated during a daily press briefing that they were coordinating their assessments on the matter with the Department of the Treasury.
Miller expressed that no progress had been made in the talks between Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and the opposition, and that the US would not maintain the space it had opened for Venezuela in an environment where not all candidates are able to enter the race.
Miller stated that licenses granted to American companies wishing to do business in the gold sector with Venezuela will be suspended in two weeks (on February 13), and that if there is no political progress in the country, oil export licenses, which expire on April 14, will not be renewed after that date.
In its decision on January 27, the TSJ upheld the 15-year political ban imposed on former lawmaker and opposition leader Machado, as well as one of the prominent opposition leaders, Henrique Capriles.
Machado, who challenged the decision, announced that she would run in any case, while the Maduro government stated that the decision in question was entirely legal and not open to debate.
The US administration began implementing oil sanctions on Venezuela in 2019, following Maduro's victory in his second term as president.
Following an agreement reached by Maduro with the opposition last year to "hold free and transparent elections" in 2024, the sanctions in question were suspended by the US in October 2023.