The opposition to Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro on Jan. 5 took control of the country's National Assembly, presumably initiating a period of heightened confrontation between the embattled socialist leader and those who have long fought his policies, which echo those of his late predecessor, Hugo Chávez.

The swearing-in of 163 new lawmakers means that the coalition surrounding Maduro's United Socialist Party of Venezuela has lost hold of the majority in the legislature for the first time in 17 years, The Associated Press reported. Nevertheless, a court ruling prevented the opposition from assuming the two-thirds majority it was initially believed to have won in the body.

Venezuela's Supreme Tribunal -- the country's highest court, which is controlled by Maduro allies -- barred four elected representatives from taking their seats over allegations of fraud. Maduro, meanwhile, slammed the new National Assembly as a "bourgeois parliament" that would seek to overturn the social gains of the "revolution" begun by Chávez, the Guardian reported.

The president also derided comments by the U.S. Department of State, which had voiced concern over attempts to limit the powers of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, the Spanish news agency EFE reported.

"Today, the U.S. State Department issued a communique as though it were governing Venezuela, involving itself in internal affairs of Venezuela; nobody is allowed to meddle in affairs that only affect Venezuelans," Maduro charged on Jan. 4.

"What do the State Department and the United States government have to do with the swearing-in of the National Assembly tomorrow? They do not have to impose any preconditions, conditions or anything; no conditions, we do not accept them, Empire."

Commencing its official business, meanwhile, the National Assembly elected opposition lawmaker Henry Ramos Allup as its new president, Noticias 24 reported. Ramos replaces Diosdado Cabello, who had long been seen as Venezuela's second most powerful man.

Also part of the parliament's leadership will be opposition members Enrique Márquez, who was chosen as the body's first vice president, and Simón Calzadilla, who will serve as its second vice president.