Venezuela Chaos After Maduro Claims To Win Elections, US Opens Doors For New Sanctions

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro/PHOTO via Instagram @nicolasmaduro

JAKARTA - Venezuela experienced chaos after Nicolas Maduro claimed to have won the election for the third presidential term. Security forces clashed with residents on the streets and fired tears.

Recently, the United States has again highlighted the credibility of President Maduro's claims. The US is preparing for new sanctions against the OPEC country.

Senior US officials, when briefing reporters on Venezuelan elections, sharpened Washington's response to election disputes, where Venezuela's election authorities said Maduro had won a third term, extending 25 years of socialist party rule.

Meanwhile, independent polls showed a landslide victory for the opposition.

The US and a number of other countries cast doubt on the official vote count. Maduro's opposition rival,fo Gonzalez, insists he is the real winner.

US officials, speaking without wanting to be named, amplify the public demands of senior aides to President Joe Biden for Maduro to publish a detailed vote tabulation.

If this is not done then it will make the international community unwilling to accept the results announced.

The officials did not disclose any new punitive action, but said Washington would assess its sanctions policy against Venezuela based on any action Maduro took in the future.

"We are faced with a possible new scenario," said an official.

"We will consider this as we plan a step forward in connection with sanctions against Venezuela", reported by Reuters on Tuesday, July 30.

Washington, which refused to be re-elected by Maduro in 2018 as a fake, broadly eased sanctions on the Venezuelan oil industry last October in response to a deal between Maduro and opposition parties.

But in April, the US reimposed the sanctions, accusing Maduro of reneging on election commitments.

By being involved in election suppression and manipulation, and by declaring the winner without knowing the results of regional elections in detail. Maduro representatives have removed the credibility of the election results they announced," said a US official.

Speaking earlier in Tokyo, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US had serious concerns the results announced did not reflect the will or voice of the Venezuelan people.