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.

The Biden administration is beginning to refer to Edmundo González Urrutia as Venezuela’s president-elect, a senior administration official said, its strongest acknowledgment yet that the opposition candidate won July’s presidential election.