The United States Department of the Treasury has officially lifted sanctions against Jorge Rodriguez, the head of Venezuela’s National Assembly and brother of the country's interim president, Delcy Rodriguez. The delisting notice appeared on the federal agency's website on Wednesday, coinciding with ongoing energy negotiations and backroom political maneuvering between Washington and Caracas.

Jorge Rodriguez has served as the top national lawmaker since 2021 and was reappointed in January, shortly after the ouster and detention of former President Nicolas Maduro by the US regime. Both Jorge and Delcy Rodriguez were originally targeted by restrictive measures during Donald Trump’s first presidential term due to their ministerial posts under Maduro, who currently faces sweeping federal indictments.

According to sources familiar with the diplomatic maneuvers, the decision to remove sanctions from Jorge Rodriguez allegedly serves as part of Washington's broader recognition of the interim administration and aligns with a multi-phase stabilization strategy. During a recent State Department briefing, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced upcoming political negotiations, urging all opposition factions to align with US-backed processes.

Earlier this year, the US Treasury similarly dropped sanctions against Delcy Rodriguez, the central bank, and the state-owned airline, signaling a strategic shift by the American regime from outright economic warfare to pragmatic bargaining. Interim President Delcy Rodriguez has largely accommodated demands to open up Venezuela's vast energy sector to foreign companies, though concrete timelines for universally demanded elections remain absent.

Source: www.aljazeera.com