Venezuela, a bipartisan group of 15 US senators introduced legislation on Wednesday to provide $400m in new aid.
They encourage other countries to impose more sanctions on President Nicolas Maduro’s administration and ease penalties on officials who recognize a new government.
US President Donald Trump’s administration recognized opposition leader Juan Guaido as Venezuela’s legitimate leader.
Guaido declared himself interim president in January, calling the presidency of Maduro illegitimate. Maduro has accused the United States and Guaido of staging a coup.
The bill would provide $200m in new aid for Venezuela and $200m for neighboring countries taking in refugees.
It would also revoke US visas for relatives of sanctioned Venezuelans, remove sanctions on officials not involved in human rights abuses if they recognize Guaido. And require work with Latin American and European governments to implement their own sanctions.
