Venezuela passes law enacting harsh penalties for supporters of US blockade

A law passed by Venezuela’s National Assembly forbids those who support or assist in the financing of piracy and other forms of terrorism from serving up to 20 years in prison.

Following the US’s seizure of oil tankers linked to Venezuela, which the president’s government has criticized as lawless piracy, the legislation was passed on Tuesday.

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Giuseppe Alessandrello addressed the law to the National Assembly, which is under the control of Maduro’s ruling party, saying, “This law seeks to protect the national economy and prevent the deterioration of living standards for the population.”

Over the past few months, the US has deployed significant military forces to Latin America, seizes oil tankers, bombs suspected of being used for drug trafficking, and threatens land attacks on Venezuela itself.

Some of those acts, such as the seizing of oil tankers in international waters, are contested. Other actions, such as the strikes against alleged drug traffickers, are generally viewed as illegal.

The US military moved special operations aircraft and cargo planes this week, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday.

Trump claimed to have “the largest armada we’ve ever had,” calling it “the largest we’ve ever had” and “by far the largest we’ve ever had in South America.”

Members of the Trump administration falsely claimed that the US is attempting to seize control of Venezuela’s vast oil reserves, which Maduro has claimed are his government’s assets. Trump stated on Monday that both the US and the tankers themselves would keep the oil seized from the tankers.

The Venezuelan government’s efforts to repress internal dissent have benefited from the US pressure campaign.