The United States told the United Nations on Tuesday it will impose and enforce sanctions "to the maximum extent" to deprive Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro of resources as Russia warned other Latin American countries could be next.

The Trump administration argued before the UN Security Council that Venezuela is diverting oil revenues to the Cartel de los Soles

Venezuela's parliament on Tuesday approved a measure that would criminalize a broad range of activities that can hinder navigation and commerce in the South American country, such as the seizure of oil tankers.

Cuba denied it had reached out to the United States about what the region would look like without President Nicolas Maduro leading Venezuela, calling the media report "absurd and false." Cuba vice foreign minister Josefina Vidal told the Associated Press on Monday that those alleged discussions,

The United States is in active pursuit of a Venezuelan oil tanker...the third vessel the U.S. has recently targeted. Former Director for Syria and Lebanon at the White House National Security Council during the Obama Administration,

As United States forces deployed in the Caribbean have zoned in on tankers transporting sanctioned Venezuelan oil, questions have deepened about the real motivation for President Donald Trump’s pressure campaign on Caracas.

Closely tied to Washington during much of the Cold War, Venezuela has gone through political upheavals over the years that now make it a major enemy in the eyes of the Trump administration.

Personnel from the United States boarded and seized a vessel off the coast of Venezuela on Saturday, according to an official familiar with the matter, as the Trump administration ramps up pressure on Caracas.

UNITED NATIONS - The UN Security Council on Tuesday held an emergency meeting on the situation in Venezuela, at which the overwhelming majority of Security Council members called for respect for the UN Charter and restraint to avoid further escalation.