The United States announced new sanctions against individuals identified as supporters and alleged financial backers of the government of Nicolás Maduro, as reported by the Argentine News Agency citing official reports released in Washington. The U.S. Department of the Treasury stated that the measure affects members of the Maduro-Flores family and partners linked to alleged criminal structures that, according to the Trump administration, operate to sustain the Venezuelan government. Official statements Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent affirmed that the action aims to affect the "narcocorruption structure" of the Venezuelan president's entourage. "We will not allow Venezuela to continue flooding our nation with lethal drugs," he noted. In the communiqué, the Treasury stated that the sanction targets the family networks of Carlos Erik Malpica Flores and Ramón Carretero Napolitano, who were also sanctioned on December 11. Regional context and growing tensions The sanctions come amid a climate of growing military tensions, with a strong presence of the U.S. Navy in the Caribbean since September under the pretext of combating drug trafficking. According to U.S. officials, the Pentagon may have sunk more than 28 vessels linked to drug trafficking and caused the deaths of at least 104 people in these operations. President Donald Trump did not rule out "the possibility of a war with Venezuela," which rekindled questions from Democratic and Republican lawmakers about the legality and true purposes of this military offensive.
