Nicolas Maduro announces resumption of dialogue with US gov't

CARACAS - Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced Monday night that his government will resume direct dialogue with the US authorities, aiming to enhance the bilateral relationship and promote joint political agreements.

In a televised address, the president conveyed his acceptance of the US government's proposal to resume direct dialogues, which he said would resume on Wednesday.

According to the president, Jorge Rodriguez Gomez, president of the National Assembly of Venezuela, will represent the Venezuelan government as the head of the National Dialogue Commission in the upcoming direct dialogues with the US authorities.

Jorge Rodriguez Gomez will be accompanied by Hector Rodriguez Castro, the governor of the central state of Miranda, who has previously participated in dialogue processes.

The president emphasized as a condition that any initiative of dialogue or political negotiations in which Caracas participates will always be developed "under absolute sovereignty and independence of Venezuela."

He emphasized that these talks present "the opportunity to reestablish the terms of the dialogue with respect, without manipulation, and also that they be public dialogues without speculation."

"I am a man of dialogue and I want, through dialogue, to respect Venezuela, its democracy and its people; I want to overcome this conflict with the north (the United States), it will be up to them to comply," said the president.

The Venezuelan government has expressed on several occasions its willingness to engage in a respectful dialogue with Washington. Additionally, it has revealed that previous private conversations have taken place with representatives of the White House.