Venezuela’s president says limited sanctions relief is not enough to stabilize the country’s troubled economy.
Published on 14 April 2026
Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez has called on the United States to lift sanctions affecting the country’s economy.
His comments on Tuesday came after the US Treasury Department announced it would issue new licenses to allow transactions with certain Venezuelan banks and individuals.
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But Rodriguez argued that the move was not enough to help Venezuela out of its current economic crisis.
He framed his request as a necessary condition for foreign investment, a priority of US President Donald Trump.
“We reiterate the need to move towards a Venezuela free from sanctions, as a means of providing institutional legal certainty to investors coming to our country – a setting where they are guaranteed continued investment and a forward-looking perspective over time,” Rodriguez said. wrote On social media.
Rodriguez’s government faced protests last week from workers demanding higher wages and better pensions amid frustration over Venezuela’s sluggish economy.
Venezuela is struggling with one of the worst economic crises in its modern history, with critics blaming factors such as government mismanagement, corruption and US sanctions for the instability.
Rodriguez was sworn in less than four months after U.S. military forces kidnapped and imprisoned then-President Nicolas Maduro on January 3. Before this, she was Maduro’s vice president.
Since his inauguration, Rodriguez has sought to cooperate with Trump’s demands.
After a decades-long movement to nationalize the country’s key industries, Trump has prioritized opening Venezuela to foreign investment.
He has also insisted on a degree of control over Venezuelan policy related to oil and minerals.
Since Maduro’s removal, Trump has threatened Venezuela to “flee” and has used the threat of further military action to pressure the Rodriguez government into conforming to his policies.
In response, the Venezuelan government has passed legislation to loosen restrictions on oil exploration and mining.
It also authorized a blanket amnesty bill to release political prisoners, although critics say the legislation did not go far enough and its terms were vague.
Rodríguez has insisted that US economic sanctions imposed against the Maduro government should be eased to open more space for economic recovery.
He has pledged to address concerns over workers’ pay on May 1, a day usually associated with labor rights.
On Tuesday, he met with US Assistant Secretary of Energy Kyle Houstwit and expressed interest in hearing from energy officials about potential projects and regulation changes in Venezuela.
Since Maduro’s removal, the US has moved to strengthen relations with Venezuela after years of broken relations.
For example, it has reopened its embassy in Caracas, and it has gradually eased sanctions on some sectors, including its oil industry.
The US currently approves all Venezuelan oil sales abroad, with the proceeds kept in US-controlled bank accounts.
Tuesday’s sanctions relief targeted Venezuela’s central bank, as well as other state-owned banks and financial services firms, such as Banco de Venezuela, Tesoro and Digital de los Trabajadores.
Another general license was issued to lift sanctions against certain transactions with the Venezuelan government to help promote “commercial-related dialogue”.
