The feared list of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), of the United States Department of the Treasury, continues to change. This Wednesday, October 14, the president of Venezuela’s National Assembly, Jorge Jesus Rodriguez Gomez, was removed from it.
Without providing any explanation, the Department of the Treasury reported that Rodriguez Gomez and other related aliases had been removed from the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) List.
The Venezuelan politician, one of the most influential figures in Chavismo, is the brother of that country’s interim president, Delcy Rodriguez, who was also removed from the OFAC list last April.
Steps Toward Normalizing Relations Between the Two Countries
With Jorge at the head of the legislature and Delcy at the head of the executive branch following the capture and extraction of Nicolas Maduro from Caracas, two branches of government in that country are in the hands of two siblings. For this reason, this period in Venezuela’s history has been described as the “Rodrigato.”
The lifting of sanctions against the Rodriguez siblings represents steps toward normalizing relations between the two countries, facilitated by the oil agreement between the United States and Venezuela, announced last August, which grants Washington control and preferential access to 17 Venezuelan oil fields containing proven reserves of 65 billion barrels.
Jorge Rodriguez, who has served as minister of communications, vice president, and president of the National Assembly since 2021, has played a strategic role in Chavismo’s institutional continuity and in contacts with Washington.
The document in which the Department of the Treasury announces Jorge Rodriguez’s removal from the OFAC list, also known as the Clinton List, merely provides identification details, including his full name and date of birth, November 9, 1965, in El Valle, Libertador, Capital District, Venezuela.
The measure will allow Jorge Rodriguez to regain access to the U.S. financial system, although removal from the OFAC list does not automatically eliminate other restrictions that may affect him, such as those related to obtaining a visa or traveling to the United States.
The president of the National Assembly was added to the OFAC list in September 2018, during Donald Trump’s first term, when the Department of the Treasury announced measures against four figures linked to the Maduro regime: his wife, Cilia Flores; Delcy Rodriguez, then Venezuela’s vice president; Jorge Rodriguez; and Vladimir Padrino Lopez, then minister of defense.
The Rodriguez Siblings Are Relieved, but Venezuela Changes Little
According to the United States, the measure was intended to target Maduro’s inner circle, which it accused of contributing to his continued hold on power. At the time, then-Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin said: “Maduro relies on his inner circle to maintain his grip on power, while his regime systematically loots what remains of Venezuela’s wealth.”
“We continue to designate those loyalists who allow Maduro to consolidate his control over the armed forces and the government, while the Venezuelan people suffer,” he added.
For many, things have not changed significantly, and the Venezuelan people continue to suffer. This year, for example, Human Rights Watch (HRW) documented that reports of arbitrary detentions, torture, and persecution of opposition leaders, activists, and journalists by the state continue.
It highlighted cases such as restrictions on the movements of figures like Maria Corina Machado and measures against opposition figures such as Juan Pablo Guanipa in 2026.
Proceedings by the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on crimes against humanity committed by the regime in which the Rodriguez siblings have played an active role are still underway.
In response to allegations by opposition sectors and the international community regarding the lack of democratic freedoms and electoral transparency, the ruling party maintains that constitutional order is guaranteed and rejects external pressure, despite the fact that, under its administration, Venezuelans’ purchasing power has declined considerably and levels of informality and inequality remain high.
HRW also found that a large part of the country’s resident population faces difficulties accessing public health services, food, and decent wages, sustaining the need for humanitarian assistance.
Because of the economic, social, and political crisis, the number of Venezuelans displaced worldwide exceeds 7.9 million, according to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), with the vast majority hosted by countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.