Russia has called on the United States to stop its “politics of blackmail” after Washington imposed sanctions on Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza in a bid to pressure President Nicolas Maduro to step down.
“We exhort the United States to return to the realm of international law, end its politics of blackmail and stop provoking tensions in Venezuela from abroad,” the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement on Friday.
Earlier in the day, the US Treasury Department in a statement announced a list of sanctions against Arreaza as well as a senior Venezuelan judge, Carol Padilla, accused by Washington of having a role in the ongoing crisis in the Latin American country.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in the statement that any US assets belonging directly or indirectly to the two Venezuelan officials would be blocked.
Venezuela has been in political turmoil since US-backed opposition figure Juan Guaido declared himself “interim president” late in January.
The administration of US President Donald Trump, which immediately recognized Guaido’s self-proclamation, has since been mounting economic pressure on Caracas and has repeatedly threatened to use military force to topple Maduro’s government.