President Donald Trump is continuing to ratchet up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro, saying it would be "smart" for him to step down and warning him not to play "tough."

Venezuela’s parliament has approved a fast-tracked law criminalising tanker seizures and blockades, responding to recent US naval actions against sanctioned oil shipments and intensifying President Donald Trump’s pressure on Nicolás Maduro.

Trump’s four-month pressure campaign on the Maduro government began with the stated purpose of stemming the flow of illegal drugs from the South American nation but has developed into something more amorphous.

Venezuela’s National Assembly has passed a law enacting harsh penalties for those who support or help finance blockades and acts of piracy, including up to 20 years in prison.

The U.S. campaign to topple President Nicolás Maduro is stranding Venezuelans around the world, compounding the misery of a beleaguered population.

President Donald Trump is gathering with top national security officials on Monday, a meeting that comes as the U.S. Coast Guard steps up efforts to interdict oil tankers in the Caribbean Sea as part of the Republican administration's escalating pressure campaign on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro's government.

President Trump wants Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to leave office. If he doesn't, the US has two choices: regime change by force, or withdrawal.