US Government Re-Issues Some Sanctions for Venezuela

(USNewsBreak.com) – To keep some rogue countries in check, other nations will sometimes impose economic sanctions. The United States has levied them against many for various reasons. For example, several nations sanctioned Russia because it invaded Ukraine, and a host of European nations joined the US in levying sanctions against Iran because of its desire to create nuclear weapons and its support of terrorist organizations. In 2005, the US issued targeted sanctions against Venezuela, and in 2013, it expanded them under Nicolás Maduro’s regime. When President Joe Biden took office, he eased up on some of them, but his administration has seemingly turned that around.

On Monday, January 29, the Biden Administration began reinstating sanctions against the South American country due to its refusal to follow through on stipulations established at the time of the rollbacks. The US mandated that the Maduro regime lift bans on opposition figures who might challenge him in elections to keep the loosened restrictions. Since the Venezuelan government has continued to ban Maria Corina Machado, an opposition candidate, from running, the US is reimposing restrictions.

A little over three months after the Biden administration lifted most economic sanctions on Venezuela, they are now reimposing some of them.https://t.co/yokmQYpy6O

— ABC News (@ABC) January 30, 2024

As a result of the prohibitions, any transactions involving Minerven, a Venezuelan state-owned gold mining firm, must conclude no later than February 13. That’s not all, though. A White House official speaking on condition of anonymity said that should Maduro refuse to let opposition candidates run, the US “will not be in a position to renew General License 44,” a stipulation that eased sanctions on the country’s oil and gas sector. Experts expect that license to run out in April of this year.

According to a statement on the Department of State website, General License 44 was issued “in support of the Barbados Agreement,” which the US is accusing Maduro of reneging on. However, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said the regime has until “the spring to honor their commitments … before we weigh what decisions we’ll take.”