U.S. Considers New Sanctions on Venezuela

By David Alire Garcia
(Reuters) – The U.S. is closely studying imposing new sanctions on individuals in Venezuela and potentially revoking licenses for oil companies operating there, as part of its response to what is termed a fraudulent election result.

Brian Nichols, the top U.S. diplomat for Latin America, made these remarks during a webcast briefing with reporters, following Venezuela's disputed presidential election on July 28.

> "The use of either individual sanctions or the revocation of licenses related to sectoral sanctions are something that we're studying very closely," said Nichols when asked about the potential for new visa restrictions and terminations of existing oil licenses.

Venezuela, a member of OPEC, is one of Latin America's leading oil producers, but its crude output has sharply declined during President Maduro's more than decade-long rule, primarily due to under-investment and five years of U.S. sanctions on the industry. However, the country has seen a slight rebound in oil production in recent years.

Post-election, members of Venezuela's opposition have urged U.S. officials to amend or withdraw oil licenses that contribute to Maduro’s government revenue.

Nichols emphasized the U.S. commitment to collaborating with "our friends and allies" for a democratic transition in Venezuela.

Venezuelan electoral officials and the top court have declared socialist President Nicolas Maduro the election winner with 52% of the vote. Nevertheless, authorities closely allied with Maduro's ruling party have failed to disclose ballot box-level vote tallies as they legally promised.

Venezuelan officials have attributed the failure to reveal these results to a computer hack. However, just days after the election, the opposition uploaded scanned copies of voting machine receipts indicating a decisive win for their candidate, Edmundo Gonzalez.

Earlier this month, Gonzalez fled to Spain and was granted political asylum. The U.S., along with most governments in the Americas and the European Union, has not recognized Maduro's victory in the July election.

> "The United States and our partner countries continue to refuse to accept Maduro's claim to victory without evidence," Nichols stated. He added that the U.S. supports the evidence available to the public indicating Gonzalez's actual win.

Nichols also criticized Caracas for failing to meet its commitments, stating that they have not offered the required information to substantiate Maduro's claimed victory.

> "It's obvious that he didn't [win]," Nichols concluded, calling for the release of those "arbitrarily detained" after the election and an end to political violence against the opposition.