The announcement coincided with the imposition of further US sanctions on Venezuela.
The US Treasury Department raised the bounty for information leading to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s arrest to $25 million, an increase from the $15 million offered in 2020. This action is part of broader measures targeting Venezuelan officials with sanctions and travel bans.
Rejecting Maduro’s July 2024 election victory as fraudulent and undemocratic, the US maintains that opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez legitimately won. Secretary of State Antony Blinken asserted last August that the US possessed “overwhelming evidence” supporting this claim.
On Maduro’s inauguration day, the Treasury further accused the Venezuelan government of “repression and subversion of democracy.”
Besides the increased reward for Maduro’s capture, the US also announced a $25 million bounty for Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello and a $15 million reward for Defense Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez, alleging their involvement in “repression and human rights abuses.”
Additional sanctions were imposed on other Venezuelan officials, including the head of PDVSA, the transportation minister, and numerous high-ranking military and police personnel.
In December, Francisco Palmieri, head of the Venezuelan Affairs Unit at the US embassy in Colombia, issued an ultimatum to Caracas, demanding Maduro’s resignation before his January inauguration and recognition of Gonzalez as the legitimate winner.
“If he stays, things will only get worse for Venezuela,” Palmieri warned.
Caracas ignored the ultimatum and has not responded to the latest US sanctions. Maduro, a vocal critic of US foreign policy, recently denounced Washington’s efforts to effect regime change.
The president accused the US of funding “corrupt and delinquent” former Latin American leaders to undermine Venezuela.
“Enough of interventionism, enough of extremism, enough of Lima groups,” he declared, specifically targeting the Lima Group, a coalition of 12 governments supporting the US policy of isolating Venezuela since 2017.