U.S. Officials To Attend Chavez Funeral

[HuffingtonPost]

WASHINGTON, March 6 (Reuters) - The United States is  expected to send a delegation to Hugo Chavez's funeral later  this week in a move that could send a conciliatory message to  Venezuela now that its stridently anti-American leader has died.                

Senior U.S. officials also said on Wednesday that Washington  had no immediate plans to respond in kind to Venezuela's  expulsion of two U.S. military attaches, which was announced on  Tuesday by Vice President Nicolas Maduro just hours before he  told the world of Chavez's death.                

Maduro, Chavez's chosen successor, said on Tuesday that one  of the expelled U.S. diplomats tried to stir up a military plot  against Chavez. He also said Chavez's cancer was an attack by  Venezuela's enemies - an accusation the United States dismissed  as absurd.                

A senior State Department official said the United States  was reviewing its response to Venezuela's expulsion of the two  military officials and said it had the right to reciprocate in  kind but for now it would not be doing so.                

The U.S. Embassy in Caracas has been without an ambassador  since 2010, when Chavez rejected the U.S. appointee. That led  Washington to revoke the credentials of Venezuela's ambassador.                

U.S. President Barack Obama issued a statement shortly after  Chavez's death was announced, expressing an interest in a  "constructive relationship" in the post-Chavez era. But analysts  said Washington would be challenged to figure out a way to  engage with Venezuelan leaders and the opposition without  appearing to meddle in the South American oil-producing nation.                

The senior State Department official, who spoke on condition  of anonymity, said the United States would like a "more  functional" relationship with the Venezuelan government going  forward.                

The official said it was too early to tell how the situation  would evolve but said the United States was expected to send a  delegation to Chavez's funeral, which will be held on Friday.  Details of who will be included in the delegation will be  announced by the White House.                

There have been no signs of security threats in Venezuela  since Chavez's death, the official said.                

"We have no indication right now that there is any threat to  our personnel or Americans in Venezuela," the official said.  "After you have the kind of broadside that Vice President Maduro  launched against the United States yesterday we obviously have  security concerns and will remain very vigilant."     (Reporting by Deborah Charles; Editing by Warren Strobel and  Eric Beech)

Via: HuffingtonPost