WASHINGTON: The US on Wednesday lifted sanctions on Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodríguez, according to an Office of Foreign Assets Control entry on the Treasury Department website.
The newly announced sanctions relief is the latest US recognition of Rodríguez as a legitimate authority in Venezuela ever since the US military captured her predecessor, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife on Jan. 3 in Venezuela’s capital, Caracas.
The pair have since been taken to New York to face drug trafficking charges and both have pleaded not guilty.
The move allows Rodríguez to more freely work with US companies and investors. Without explicitly mentioning the sanctions targeting her, Rodríguez, in a statement, expressed hope for US-Venezuela relations.
“We value President Donald Trump’s decision as a step toward normalizing and strengthening relations between our countries,” she said on her Telegram channel after the Treasury’s announcement. “We trust that this progress will allow for the lifting of current sanctions against our country, enabling us to build and guarantee an effective bilateral cooperation agenda for the benefit of our people.”
