Canada to impose sanctions on more Venezuelan officials

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada will impose targeted sanctions on 14 Venezuelan officials, adding to its previous moves to put pressure on President Nicolas Maduro's government, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

The sanctions were in response to Venezuela's "illegitimate and anti-democratic presidential elections," it said in a statement.

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Earlier this month, Maduro won a new six-year term in an election that was denounced by a string of countries as unfair, triggering fresh sanctions from the United States.

The new Canadian sanctions include freezing the assets of the officials and prohibiting Canadians from having property or financial dealings with them.

"These sanctions send a clear message that the Maduro regime's anti-democratic behaviour has consequences," Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said.

Last September, Canada imposed sanctions against 40 Venezuelan senior officials, including Maduro.

Critics say Maduro has plunged the nation into its worst-ever economic crisis.

Canada is a member of the 12-nation Lima Group, which is trying to address the crisis.

(Reporting by Leah Schnurr, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.