Venezuela's Maduro halts talks with opposition after US sanctions

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Wednesday blamed US sanctions as he ordered his government's representatives not to travel to Barbados for scheduled talks with the political opposition.

Maduro "has decided to not send the Venezuelan delegation" for talks Thursday and Friday with representatives of opposition leader Juan Guaido "due to the grave and brutal aggression" being "continuously... carried out by the Trump administration against Venezuela," a government statement said. US President Donald Trump has ordered a freeze on all Venezuelan government assets in the United States and barred transactions with its authorities.