US Set to Renew Venezuela Oil Sanctions After Presidential Candidate Barred

(Bloomberg) -- The Biden administration will restore sanctions on Venezuela’s energy sector if the country upholds its ban on an opposition candidate from running for president, two US officials said, a move that will chill recent efforts to improve ties between the two adversaries.

The US will allow a six-month suspension on sanctions to expire in April if opposition candidate María Corina Machado is barred from running, and is also considering additional measures to punish Venezuela, according to the officials, who asked not to be identified discussing private deliberations.

The National Security Council and the Treasury Department declined immediate comment.

The move — which follows a decision last week by the country’s top court to uphold the ban against her — would come as a surprise to many analysts following the thaw in relations, who had seen reversing the sanctions to be a severe response.

The Biden administration had issued a license authorizing transactions involving the oil and gas sector in Venezuela in a gesture of goodwill after President Nicolas Maduro’s government entered talks with some members of the opposition. Maduro has jailed aides to Machado, and Venezuela’s top court last week upheld a ban against her and others holding office.

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