US lifts sanctions on Venezuela's Jorge Rodriguez

The United States has lifted sanctions on Jorge Rodriguez, the head of Venezuela's National Assembly and brother of interim President Delcy Rodriguez, a Treasury Department notice showed Wednesday.

The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control removed Jorge Rodriguez from its list of sanctioned individuals. US officials did not immediately give a reason for the change.

The move comes as Jorge Rodriguez represents the interim government in US-backed transition talks with Venezuela's political opposition. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier that the next round of negotiations on a future political transition was scheduled to begin Wednesday, and encouraged opposition factions to join the talks.

Washington lifted sanctions against Delcy Rodriguez months earlier. Ties between Washington and Caracas have improved since Delcy Rodriguez, who was Maduro's vice president, took power after the United States ousted longtime leader Nicolas Maduro in a military operation in January.

Delcy Rodriguez has complied with US President Donald Trump's demands for Caracas to open its energy industry to American companies. Washington has also lifted sanctions against Venezuela's central bank and state-owned airline Conviasa as part of moves to build ties with the oil-rich Latin American country.

Delcy Rodriguez and Jorge Rodriguez were sanctioned during Trump's first presidency for their roles in supporting Maduro's government. Venezuelan authorities said the US military operation that seized Maduro and his wife in January killed around 100 people in Venezuela.