Sanctions against Venezuela illegal, violates all possible international norms: Russia

A day after the Trump administration announced sanctions against Venezuela's state-owned oil firm PDVSA, Kremlin said the sanctions were "illegal".

"The legitimate authorities of Venezuela have already labelled these sanctions illegal. We can wholly support this point of view," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Peskov added that sanctions were an "overt intervention in Venezuela's domestic affairs" and a case of "illegal competition".

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He said that Russia will strive to protect its interests "within the framework of international law".Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said that the new sanctions "violate all possible international norms" and show a course toward regime change in embattled Venezuela.

"The US has... publicly taken a course toward illegal regime change," he said Tuesday.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro while addressing the nation on television had said PDVSA would take "legal, political, operative, technical and commercial measures to defend interests of Venezuela in the United States."

The US had announced sanctions against Venezuelan state-owned oil firm PDVSA aimed at curbing its crude import to the country while pressuring Maduro to step down.

China meanwhile said the United States should bear responsibility for the consequences of its sanctions on Venezuela. Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said historical experience showed foreign interference "only makes situations more complicated".

The United States is pushing to allow opposition leader Juan Guaido as the next president even as Maduro has refused to step down. Guaido accuses Maduro of stealing the election and wants new polls in the country.

"The relevant country's sanctions on Venezuela will lead to the deterioration of conditions of people's lives," China's foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said, adding, "they should bear responsibility for the serious consequences from this."

Maduro hit back at US sanctions asserting that he will provide "reciprocal and convincing response needed to defend Venezuela's interests". Maduro's problems have been exacerbated by the fact that the United States is the biggest buyer of Venezuelan crude oil.

Juan Guaido ordered congress on Monday to appoint new boards of directors to state oil company PDVSA and US subsidiary Citgo in order to intensify pressure on his political opponent.

"If the people in Venezuela want to continue to sell us oil, as long as the money goes into blocked accounts we will continue to take it. Otherwise, will we not be buying it," US treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin said, with US national security adviser John Bolton adding that sanctions would block $7 billion in PDVSA's assets "plus over $11 billion in lost export proceeds over the next year."