GAO Report Shows Need for Clear US Policy Toward Venezuela, Lawmaker Says

A new report by the Government Accountability Office examines the “illicit financial flows” supporting the Venezuelan government and U.S. efforts to disrupt those transactions, including through sanctions. Although U.S. agencies have “provided assistance to partner countries in the region to build their capacity to disrupt criminal activity” involving Venezuela, Treasury Department officials told the GAO that “the volume of illicit financial flows is overwhelming for many partners in the region.”

The report, requested by Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho,provides "further evidence of the far-reaching and dangerous consequences of the Biden Administration’s nonexistent Venezuela policy,” Risch said. He called for Congress to take up his Venezuela Democracy Act, which would set conditions for the removal of U.S. sanctions against Venezuela (see 2304030017). “I look forward to working with my colleagues in Congress to address the threats identified in these investigations and hold the administration accountable,” Risch said.