SAO PAULO
A new law granting special powers to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to defend the country passed its first reading Wednesday, as tensions with the United States continue to grow.
Nicolás Maduro made a personal appeal to the National Assembly late Tuesday after the United States declared Venezuela a threat to national security.
"I want to thank the National Assembly for accepting this official visit ... to deliver directly ... this constitutional application for a special powers law to give me sufficient powers to defend the peace, sovereignty and the full development of Venezuela, as it faces the threat of the United States government," Maduro told Congress.
All 99 deputies aligned with the president and his governing Socialist party, the PSUV, voted in support of the law, allowing it to pass its first constitutional hurdle.
The 65 opposition lawmakers, whom Maduro has repeatedly accused of plotting a coup with the U.S. against his government, boycotted the vote in protest.
The "Anti-Imperialist Law," as Venezuelan media have dubbed the new legislation, would last six months and focus on combating perceived threats from other countries, from interference with government institutions to military interventions, according to El Universal newspaper. The legislation would also include anything deemed to pose a threat to the country's economy.
A second reading of the law is set to take place on Sunday.
Tensions between the United States and Venezuela have escalated in recent months, with both countries implementing reciprocal sanctions.
Venezuela recently named a list of U.S. officials it had banned from traveling to the country, including former president George W. Bush and ex-vice president Dick Cheney. It also demanded that the number of U.S. embassy staff be reduced and introduced compulsory visa requirement for all American citizens visiting Venezuela.
U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday issued an executive order prohibiting seven Venezuelan officials, accused by the U.S. of human rights violations, from entering U.S. territory and freezing their assets. Maduro slammed the sanctions against Venezuela as "the most aggressive, unfair and damaging step" ever taken.
The Venezuelan president has also accused his adversaries of "waging a war" against Venezuela's fragile economy, which ended 2014 in recession, with annual inflation at 68.5 percent, and with severe shortages of staple products.
The Venezuelan economy relies heavily on exports of its vast supplies of oil, the price of which has slumped dramatically since mid-2014.
