Based on the U.S. sanctions imposed on Venezuela, the United States confiscated the official plane of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in the Dominican Republic on Monday, CNN reported exclusively.
"Seizing the plane of a foreign head of state is something unprecedented in criminal matters. We are sending a clear message here that no one is above the law, no one is beyond the reach of U.S. sanctions," pointed out one of the two U.S. officials interviewed by CNN.
The aircraft, which was transferred from Dominican lands to Florida, has been described by officials as the Venezuelan equivalent of Air Force One.
The plane, whose cost is estimated at around 13 million dollars and which has been photographed during Maduro's previous state visits around the world, recalls CNN, had been in the Dominican Republic in recent months.
U.S. officials did not reveal why, but "an opportunity" arose to confiscate the aircraft during an operation involving several federal agencies, which worked "in close collaboration with the Dominican Republic, which notified Venezuela about the seizure."
Since before, millions of people have fled the Chavist dictatorship, with the northern nation as their main destination, which has generated tensions in various countries on the continent.
Since July 28, when Maduro declared himself the winner of the presidential elections in Venezuela, backed by all the institutions dominated by Chavismo, the United States, along with other countries, has demanded transparency in the results.
They have even gone so far as to say that it will demand accountability from those who allow electoral fraud and repression in the South American country.
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