Kerry Says U.S. Interested in 'Common Ground' with Venezuela
The United States is interested in improving its ties with Venezuela, a relationship that has been "severely strained" in recent years, Secretary of State John Kerry said Tuesday.
"The U.S. remains open to further addressing our differences in attempting to find areas of common ground," Kerry said during a speech at the State Department.
"It is no secret that the relations between our two countries have been severely strained in recent years," he added.
In March, U.S. President Barack Obama slapped sanctions on seven Venezuelan officials linked to human rights abuses, including a crackdown on anti-government protests last year that left 43 people dead, hundreds wounded and thousands arrested.
Earlier this month Obama spoke with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro for the first time, seeking to calm rising tensions over the sanctions, on the margins of the Summit of the Americas in Panama City.
Maduro has accused Washington of backing an opposition plot to overthrow him in a coup that he says would have involved bombing the presidential palace.
The U.S. government has dismissed the charges as baseless.
The two countries have lacked ambassadors in each other's capitals since 2010, but the United States remains the largest buyer of Venezuelan crude oil.
"I began my tenure as a secretary of state with a long conversation with the foreign minister of Venezuela in an effort to promote a more productive relationship," Kerry said.
Source: Agence France Presse
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