The Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected on Sunday through a communiqué the reports according to which a group of officials at the Venezuela consulate in Houston had been asked to leave the United States.

The Office of Communication and Institutional Relations of the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry said in the document that "strictly administrative problems have been overcome through diplomatic talks between the two governments."

According to the statement "none Venezuelan official accredited to the United States government has been expelled. The Venezuelan government is calling for prudence in the handling and flow of this type of information."

Last Saturday, November 8, the US newspaper Houston Chronicle reported that a State Department official confirmed that "the employees with the consulate general in Houston were given until Sunday to leave the country."

The newspaper said that the consular office was locked on Friday with a notice taped on the window saying it would remain closed for reasons "beyond our control."

US authorities argue that the Venezuelan government requested to move its office in Houston to a location 5 miles away and began operations before the US State Department gave its approval. Based on international protocols, all foreign diplomatic missions in the US have to get permission from the State Department in order to operate.

Translated by: Gerardo Cárdenas