“The United States will continue to work to hold accountable those responsible for undermining democracy in Venezuela,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday, September 12.
The United States announced on Thursday, September 12, a new round of sanctions against Venezuela targeting 16 officials close to President Nicolas Maduro, accused of wanting to cling to power despite having lost, according to Washington, the election of July 28.
In response, Venezuela said it rejected “with the greatest firmness” these “illegitimate and illegal” sanctions, denouncing in a statement a “new crime of aggression committed by the government of the United States against Venezuela.”
Democratic opposition “intimidated”
These American sanctions target senior officials of the National Electoral Council (CNE) and the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ), including the judge and prosecutor who issued an arrest warrant against opponent Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who has been a refugee in Spain since Sunday, according to press releases from the State and Treasury Departments.
“Rather than respecting the will of the Venezuelan people as expressed at the ballot box, Nicolas Maduro and his representatives have falsely claimed victory while repressing and intimidating the democratic opposition in an illegitimate attempt to cling to power by force,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.
“The United States will continue to work to hold accountable those responsible for undermining democracy in Venezuela,” he added.
Speaking to reporters, a senior U.S. official said on condition of anonymity that Washington was confident of Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia’s victory, stressing that “there is clear evidence that he won the largest number of votes in this election, and that fact must therefore be respected and validated by the Venezuelan authorities.”
Related News :