Venezuela slams new US sanctions as 'crime of aggression'

In a statement on Thursday, Venezuela's Foreign Affairs Ministry denounced the US move as "unilateral, illegitimate and illegal coercive measures" and a "new crime of aggression," Xinhua news agency reported. Washington has once again demonstrated "its total disregard for international law, the self-determination of peoples and the democratic will of Venezuelans," it said. The ministry noted that the latest sanctions violated the agreements signed in Qatar between the governments of Venezuela and the United States in September 2023. Earlier in the day, the US Treasury Department announced new individual sanctions against 16 Venezuelan officials in various branches of government. It said that the sanctioned officials "obstructed democratic political participation and undermined the election process" during the recent presidential elections in Venezuela. Among the officials listed were the President of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice, Caryslia Rodriguez, and the first Vice President of the National Assembly, Pedro Infante.