Item 1 of 2 Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Colina Machado addresses supporters during a march amid a disputed presidential election in Caracas, Venezuela, on August 3, 2024. Reuters/Fausto Torrealba/File photo
(1/2) Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Colina Machado addresses supporters during a march amid a contentious presidential election in Caracas, Venezuela, August 3, 2024. Buy license rights to Reuters/Fausto Torrealba/File Photo Opens in a new tab targeting elections in Venezuela. Courts, military officials, officials say Washington state aims to ‘hold accountable’ masterminds of election fraud, officials say
HOUSTON, Aug 21 (Reuters) – The United States has issued a list of about 60 Venezuelan government officials and their families who could be sanctioned in the first punitive measure following Venezuela’s disputed presidential election in July. Two people involved said that it had been created. .
Officials said the proposed list would name officials from Venezuela’s National Electoral Commission (CNE), Supreme Court and counterintelligence police who were involved in the political turmoil.
The U.S. Treasury Department has submitted a draft sanctions list to the State Department in recent days, the people said, adding that the number of people sanctioned is subject to change.
The sanctions impose travel bans on the targeted officials and their families, and also prohibit U.S. companies from doing business with them.
The CNE declared incumbent President Nicolas Maduro the winner of the July 28 election, without disclosing the total vote count. Venezuela’s Supreme Court began auditing the vote this month, but experts and election observers say it is unlikely to challenge the government.
Washington and other governments dispute Mr. Maduro’s claimed election victory. Rival candidate Edmundo Gonzalez also declared victory, with more than 80% of the vote tallies released by the opposition showing him an overwhelming victory with about 67% support.
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It is not immediately clear when this measure will be announced or whether there may be any associated industry sanctions.
The US State Department declined to comment. The U.S. Treasury Department and Venezuela’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not respond to requests for comment.
Brian Nichols, the U.S. assistant secretary for Western Hemisphere affairs, said on social media website X on Tuesday that the United States “will hold accountable those who enabled election fraud and oppression.”
In recent days, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Ivan Gil accused the United States of orchestrating a “coup” against Maduro in a response to U.S. officials over X.
Neighboring countries, the United States, Canada, the European Union and the Regional Organization of American States have stepped up their calls for the full results to be published. But so far there has been little sign of tough action over what some have accused of voter fraud. US officials said the election manipulation had stripped Mr Maduro’s claims of victory of “any credibility” and left the door open to new sanctions.
A spokesperson for the U.S. National Security Council told Reuters last week that “we are working with our partners to consider a range of options to encourage and pressure President Maduro to recognize the election results.”
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The United States is also “deeply concerned by the arbitrary repression and indiscriminate detention of opposition supporters by Venezuelan security forces,” the spokesperson added.
The US’ options for imposing additional sanctions are narrow. Five years ago, the United States announced its toughest measures yet following Mr. Maduro’s unrecognized first re-election. These measures have since hurt OPEC countries’ oil sectors.
In April, the Treasury Department decided not to renew a wide range of permits that had temporarily given Venezuela the means to freely export oil. Instead, the US issued individual licenses to some energy companies.
The US government has already sanctioned a number of Venezuelan officials, including CNE Director Elvis Amoroso.
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Reporting by Marianna Paraga in Houston. Additional reporting by Daphne Psaledakis in Washington. Editing: David Gregorio
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