Following the sanction, US firms and individuals have been prevented from conducting business with Maduro.

The decision by US President Donald Trump was taken after his Venezuelan counterpart decided to hold an election on Sunday, which drew mass protests in the national capital.

However, Maduro has termed the election 'a vote for the revolution' and said that the US sanction does not bother him.

"The emperor Donald Trump took decisions against me that show his desperation and hate," he said in a televised speech.

"I don't obey orders from foreign governments and never will... Sanction me as you wish, but the Venezuelan people have decided to be free and I am the independent president of a free nation," he added.

Meanwhile, the US sanction has also placed Maduro in the same list as Syria's Bashar al-Assad, North Korea's Kim Jong-un, and Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe, all of whom share the same ruling.

Announcing the decision, US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said, "Yesterday's illegitimate elections confirm that Maduro is a dictator who disregards the will of the Venezuelan people."

"By sanctioning Maduro, the United States makes clear our opposition to the policies of his regime and our support for the people of Venezuela who seek to return their country to a full and prosperous democracy," he added.

Maduro has also come under fire from Venezuela's attorney general, Luisa Ortega, who said that the election underlined a dictatorial ambition.

The new constituent assembly in Venezuela will have the power to rewrite the constitution.

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