US announcement follows months of frustration over Maduro government’s claims of victory in contested July election.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday called Venezuela's Edmundo Gonzalez the country's "president-elect" for the first time, signaling that Washington wants to step up pressure on President Nicolas Maduro.

The U.S. government has recognized Venezuelan opposition candidate Edmundo González as the “president-elect” of the South American country, months after President Nicolás Maduro claimed to have won the July election.