US Partially Restores Sanctions on Venezuela... Additional Measures Under Review

Opposition Candidate Challenging Current President's Third Term
Faces Possible Re-Sanction After Disqualification

The U.S. government has reinstated some of the sanctions against Venezuela that were eased last year.

Venezuelan opposition presidential candidate Maria Corina Machado
[Photo by Yonhap News]

According to reports from local media including the AP on the 29th (local time), the U.S. Treasury Department announced that the trading license granted to Venezuela's state-owned gold mining company 'Minerven' will expire on April 13, and American companies must cease transactions with the company before then. The Treasury had previously lifted sanctions on Minerven last October after Venezuela's ruling and opposition parties agreed on an election roadmap.

This move appears to be in response to the disqualification of Venezuela's opposition presidential candidate Mar?a Corina Machado (56). On the 26th, Venezuela's Supreme Court ruled that Machado committed past misconduct and banned her from running for public office for 15 years.

Machado is considered a key challenger to President Nicol?s Maduro (61), who has been in power since 2013 and is seeking a third term. She was overwhelmingly chosen as the opposition's presidential candidate in last October's primary. On the 27th, the U.S. State Department stated that the Venezuelan Supreme Court's decision does not align with Maduro's previous promise to hold a competitive election this year and expressed intentions to review sanctions against Venezuela.

The Biden administration is reportedly considering additional measures, including the reinstatement of sanctions on the oil sector. The six-month trading license granted to Venezuela's oil and gas sector as part of last October's sanction easing will expire on April 8. If opposition candidates including Machado are barred from running, it is expected that the license will not be extended and will be allowed to expire.

The U.S. has labeled the 2018 Venezuelan presidential election as fraudulent. In 2019, amid allegations of election fraud, the Maduro regime was accused of human rights abuses and undermining democracy, leading to sanctions that blocked exports of Venezuela's main revenue sources, oil and gas. However, last October, after Maduro and the opposition agreed on this year's election roadmap, sanctions were eased by issuing a six-month trading license for Venezuela's oil and gas sectors.

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