Politics Venezuela hopes that its close trade relation with the United States will not be adversely affected by the stalemate following the eviction of both the US and Venezuelan chiefs of missions, Venezuelan Ambassador to Washington Bernardo Álvarez told AP on Monday.

The bilateral relations went into troubles late last week when Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez expelled US Ambassador Patrick Duddy. The US Department of State replied by the same token, reported AP.

Alvarez said in an exclusive interview with AP that he could not talk about breaking-off of diplomatic relations, but "the political relation is at the lowest level."

The diplomat, who came back to Caracas last Friday, regarded as "tough" his sudden withdrawal from the Venezuelan embassy in Washington. However, he insisted on saying that this is part of "diplomatic methods."