New sanctions imposed by the US on Venezuelan officials following Maduro's inauguration

The United States imposed sanctions Friday on eight Venezuelan officials, and raised to $25 million its reward for the arrest of Nicolas Maduro the day before his inauguration into a third term after a disputed vote last year.

The latest of a series punishments taken by the outgoing Biden Administration against Maduro’s government following the July election, in which both the Socialist Party of Maduro and the opposition of the OPEC nation claimed to have won.

Ramon Velasquez, Venezuela's transport minister, and Hector Obregon (the recently appointed president of Venezuela's PDVSA state oil company) are among the new officials sanctioned.

The U.S. action coincided with Venezuelan sanctions announced by Britain, the European Union and other countries.

Maduro, along with his allies, have consistently rejected the sanctions imposed by the U.S. He and his allies have praised the resilience of the country despite these measures. However, they have in the past blamed sanctions for some economic hardships.

The country's top court and electoral authority claim that Maduro won the presidential vote last year, even though they haven't published any detailed results.

The government has said that it will arrest the opposition's presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzales if he returns to the country after his exile. It has also detained prominent members of the opposition and activists leading up to the inauguration.

Gonzalez, 75 years old, is said to have won by a large margin. The opposition has released its own voting results as proof, which have won the support of governments all over the world. This includes the United States who see Gonzalez as the next president. International election observers said that the vote was unfair.

Maduro has been in office since 2013. The new sanctions are coming just a little over a week before U.S. president Joe Biden ends his term on January 20 and is succeeded by Donald Trump.

The U.S. government has increased the reward for information that leads to Maduro's arrest and conviction, who is long accused of drug trafficking in the U.S., to $25 million. The reward was $15 million.

Maduro, despite the pressure of successive U.S. administrations and with the support from Venezuela's army, China, Russia, and Iran, has remained in power.

Before the arrest of Maria Corina Machado, the opposition leader who had not been seen in public for months, following a protest against the government in Caracas on Thursday. Matt Spetalnick, Marianna Pararaga and Matt Spetalnick report.

(source: Reuters)