New Delhi, April 10 -- Venezuelan lawmakers on Thursday approved a bill to regulate the country's mining as it seeks to attract leery foreign investors to a once-private industry that has long been exploited by criminal groups with ties to the government.

It is the latest legislative initiative by acting President Delcy Rodriguez since the self-proclaimed socialist government that has ruled Venezuela for 26 years came under pressure from the Trump administration in January, when the U.S. military deposed then-President Nicolas Maduro.

The lengthy bill will now undergo a review by the country's high court to determine if it is constitutional.

The bill regulates mineral rights, establishes small, medium and large-scale mining categories,...