Washington:
Amidst flaring of tension between the United States and Venezuela following the death of its President Hugo Chavez, US President Barack Obama has said that America is interested in developing a "constructive" relationship with the Venezuelan people.
"At this challenging time of President Hugo Chavez's passing, the United States reaffirms its support for the Venezuelan people and its interest in developing a constructive relationship with the Venezuelan government," Obama said in his statement.
"As Venezuela begins a new chapter in its history, the United States remains committed to policies that promote democratic principles, the rule of law, and respect for human rights," Obama said in his statement issued after the death of Chavez on Tuesday.
Meanwhile the US State Department has reacted furiously to the Venezuelan Government's allegations that the US is involved in conspiracy to destabilise their government or caused the illness of Chavez.
"We completely reject the Venezuelan government's claim that the United States is involved in any type of conspiracy to destabilise the Venezuelan government," the State Department spokesperson Patrick Ventrell said.
"We reject the specific allegations against members of our Embassy. An assertion that the United States was somehow involved in causing President Chavez's illness is absurd, and we definitively reject it.
The United States has options of reciprocal action available to it under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations," Ventrell added.
The State Department statement came after Venezuela said it was expelling a US Embassy official for plotting against the government after the country's vice president said Chavez's enemies poisoned him with the cancer he has battled for nearly two years.
