CARACAS, Aug. 28 (Xinhua) -- U.S. economic sanctions against Venezuela aim to push the South American country to the brink of bankruptcy and default, the Venezuelan ambassador to the United Nations said on Monday.
The sanctions seek to have Venezuela "enter into default" in paying back its foreign debt, ambassador Rafael Ramirez told Venezuelan TV station Globovision.
Declaring default would dry up financing and make it even harder for Venezuela to import necessary food items and medications, he said.
On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order that "prohibits dealings in new debt and equity issued by the government of Venezuela and its state oil company" and also prohibits "dividend payments" to the South American country's government.
However, Ramirez sounded optimistic about Venezuela's options.
"We have markets for our oil. It's likely that the United States is the one who is going to have problems in supplying its oil refining system, with no access to Venezuela's extra heavy crude," he said.
Also on Monday, the government condemned the right-wing opposition coalition (MUD) for cheering the economic sanctions on Venezuela's already battered economy, and issuing a statement inviting other countries to follow suit.
The right-wing coalition "urges other countries and investors to economically block and isolate the country," and "do the same as the United States did on Aug. 25," the government said, adding that "for MUD the enemy is Venezuela."
