The United States has imposed potentially hard-hitting economic sanctions on Venezuela, barring banks from any new financial dealings with the government or state-run oil company PDVSA.
The White House on Friday announced President Donald Trump had signed an executive order “imposing strong, new financial sanctions” on the government of Venezuela.
“The president’s new action prohibits dealings in new debt and equity issued by the government of Venezuela and its state oil company,” it said in a statement.
“It also prohibits dealings in certain existing bonds owned by the Venezuelan public sector, as well as dividend payments to the government of Venezuela,” it added.
The White House said that the measures “are carefully calibrated” to deny the government of President Nicolas Maduro “a critical source of financing to maintain its illegitimate rule, protect the United States financial system from complicity in Venezuela’s corruption…