TerrorismU.S. considering adding Venezuela to state-sponsors of terrorism list
The United States is reportedly considering adding Venezuela to the list of terrorism-sponsoring states. The move would impose further financial punishment on the already-collapsing Venezuelan economy, which is staggering under the combined weight of hyperinflation, food and medicine shortages, and a mass exodus of citizens.
The United States is reportedly considering adding Venezuela to the list of terrorism-sponsoring states.
The move would impose further financial punishment on the already-collapsing Venezuelan economy, which is staggering under the combined weight of hyperinflation, food and medicine shortages, and a mass exodus of citizens.
Senator Marco Rubio (R-Florida) has been lobbying for the imposition of such sanctions, and he appears to have persuaded the administration to make the move.
The Washington Post reports that no time frame has yet been determined for placing Venezuela on the list.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a senior U.S. official told the Post earlier this month that the Trump administration was “looking at all potential avenues” to pressure Nicolas Maduro’s government.
“We believe his presidency to be illegitimate,” the official said, reiterating Washington’s rejection of the outcome of Venezuela’s elections earlier this year.
“Maduro won a new six-year term in May but his main rivals disavowed the election and alleged massive irregularities.
“The regime really understands that the world is getting smaller for them. And that’s the kind of pressure that is needed to really change minds in the regime.”
The source said, however, that it would be a challenge for the government to provide concrete proof linking the Maduro government to terrorism if it decides to place Venezuela on the list.
The four countries currently on the list – North Korea, Iran, Sudan, and Syria – have been found to “have repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism.”
In September, Rubio and two other Republican senators sent a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, accusing Venezuela of links to Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant group and the FARC leftist guerrilla movement in Colombia.
The administration has imposed several rounds of sanctions against Caracas since 2017, including an executive order signed on 1 November which aimed at disrupting Venezuela’s gold exports.
The EUU announced earlier this month it would extend its existing sanctions against Venezuela for another year after accusing the regime of violating democracy and human rights.
