CARACAS, July 31 (Xinhua) -- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Monday rebuffed U.S. sanctions that targeted him personally, saying he was "proud" to be singled out by the measure.
"They sanction me because I call for an electoral process that is unique in the history of the Americas ... because I don't obey the orders of foreign governments? If that is so, then I feel proud of the proposed sanction, 'Mister Emperor (U.S. President) Donald Trump'," said Maduro.
"The threats and sanctions ... do not intimidate me... I have nothing t食品機械o fear," Maduro said, adding the sanctions serve to highlight the impotence, desperation and hatred felt in Washington.
Earlier in the day, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that due to the measure, "all assets of Nicolas Maduro subject to U.S. jurisdiction are frozen, and U.S. persons are prohibited from dealing with him."
Elections for the National Constituent Assembly (ANC) was conducted on Sunday in Venezuela nationwide. Polls opened in the early morning to elect 537 of the total 545 members of the ANC. The remaining eight seats belong to indigenous people.
The ANC was proposed by Maduro in May to rewrite the 1999 Constitution to break the ongoing political deadlock that has paralyzed the South American country.
The right-wing opposition coalition Democratic Unity Roundtable (MUD) claims the ANC is just an attempt by Maduro to consolidate power, and boycotted Sunday's vote.
The United States, which backs the opposition in Venezuela, called the ANC elections a "sham."
Political observer Sergio Rodriguez Gelfenstein told Xinhua that the U.S. sanctions against Maduro were a symbolic measure designed to show Washington's disapproval of the renegade leader who defied a White House order to scrap Sunday's poll.
Personal sanctions against Maduro are unlikely to harm U.S. interests, whereas economic sanctions against the South American country could affect U.S. businesses, Rodriguez said.
U.S President Donald Trump initially said he was going to take economic measures against Caracas over the ANC. However, "he began to realize the implications that would have for the United States and changed his mind," Rodriguez explained.
"Now he takes this measure, which has more of a symbolic value. I don't know whether President Maduro has (bank) accounts in the United States. I doubt it," said Rodriguez.
"I also don't think there is a U.S. official who wants to do any personal business with the Venezuelan president," Rodriguez said, noting that the measure is made "more for U.S. public opinion."
More than eight million Venezuelans voted on Sunday to elect the members of the ANC, who will be charged with drafting a new constitution to bolster social protections and communal programs.
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