US slaps sanctions on Venezuelan minister, judge

Washington: The US Treasury Department said it has imposed sanctions on Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza and a Venezuelan judge.

Jorge Arreaza and the female judge, Carol Padilla, were put on the blacklist of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), Xinhua reported on Friday, citing a statement issued by the US Treasury department.

As a result of the sanctions, all property and interests in property of those sanctioned targets that are subject to US jurisdiction will be blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them, the statement noted.

The US has been pursuing a policy of economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation against the Venezuelan government in support of the opposition leader Juan Guaido. The OFAC last week targeted Central Bank of Venezuela and its director Iliana Josefa Ruzza Teran.

In response, Arreaza called US economic and financial sanctions that impact the whole nation represent human rights violations on a grand scale.

The US administration recognised Guaido as the nation's "interim president" on Jan 23, days after Nicolas Maduro was inaugurated for a second term.

In response to Washington's support for Guaido, Maduro announced that he was severing "diplomatic and political" ties with the US.