WASHINGTON — Relations between the United States and Venezuela grew increasingly hostile on Monday as the U.S. slapped new visa restrictions on Venezuelan officials and their families and Venezuela’s president accused Vice President Joe Biden of plotting to overthrow him.
The State Department said current and former Venezuelan officials believed to be associated with human rights abuses or corruption would be subject to the restrictions, which bars those individuals from entering the United States. In a first, the U.S. said its ban would also apply to the individuals’ immediate family members, too.
“We are sending a clear message that human rights abusers, those who profit from public corruption, and their families are not welcome in the United States,” said State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki. She said the U.S. wouldn’t name the abusers publicly because of visa confidentiality laws.
At the same time, the U.S. dismissed as “ludicrous” a claim by Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro that Biden had conspired against him. In a televised address over the weekend, Maduro claimed that Biden sought to foment the overthrow of his socialist government during a Caribbean energy summit Biden hosted last month in Washington. According to Maduro, Biden told Caribbean heads of state that the Venezuelan government’s days were numbered and it was time they abandon their support.
“What Vice President Jose Biden did is unspeakable,” Maduro said. “Vice President Biden: Look me in the eyes. I saw you in Brazil, I gave you my hand. You, who said this is a new era for relations in Latin America, were going to conspire against Venezuela.”
During the public portion of the energy summit, Biden never mentioned Venezuela in his remarks. It was unclear what Biden might have said to foreign leaders at the summit behind closed doors, but the vice president’s office said Maduro’s description of Biden’s comments were “patently false.”
Biden’s office, in a statement, added that Maduro’s accusations “are clearly part of an effort to distract from the concerning situation in Venezuela, which includes repeated violations of freedom of speech, assembly, and due process.”
Maduro, who is struggling to keep Venezuela’s oil-dependent economy afloat despite mounting problems, frequently accuses foreign governments of conspiracies, coup attempts and assassination plots, including the U.S.
The exchange of barbs undermined hopes that the U.S. and Venezuela could pursue improved ties following a rapid deterioration of relations last year.
Just one month ago, Maduro and Biden shook hands in Brazil in an impromptu meeting and expressed an interest in warmer relations. A photograph of Biden and Maduro smiling warmly at each other at Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff’s swearing-in ceremony became a meme in Venezuela, and Maduro described the meeting as “cordial.” U.S. officials said after that meeting that Biden discussed ways Venezuela could pursue better relations with the U.S., including by releasing political prisoners.
Last year, the U.S. targeted 24 high-ranking Venezuelan officials with a travel ban, including Cabinet ministers, senior judges and high-ranking military members the U.S. said had committed human rights abuses during a crackdown on opposition protests. Obama also signed into law sanctions legislation allowing him to freeze assets of officials involved in that crackdown.
But many U.S. lawmakers have advocated for extending travel penalties for relatives of Venezuelan officials, noting that while the officials themselves don’t tend to travel to the U.S., their wives and children are known to vacation here.
Venezuela’s economy has suffered as the price of oil plummets, with widespread shortages and galloping inflation fueling frustration with Maduro’s leadership. The U.S. and Venezuela have not exchanged ambassadors since 2010.
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