President Hugo Chavez's government on Wednesday questioned the sincerity of the Obama administration's stated desire to improve relations with Venezuela, accusing the U.S. of sending "aggressive signals."
The Foreign Ministry complained about remarks Tuesday by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in an interview with Venezuelan television station Globovision, which is a strong critic of Chavez's leftist policies and has been threatened by him with losing its broadcast license.
Clinton said she hoped Venezuela's government recognized it is possible to be "a very strong leader" without "trying to take on too much power" or "in any way raising questions about the commitment to democracy."
In a statement, the Foreign Ministry accused Clinton of sending "an aggressive signal from the government of the United States to Venezuela, Latin America and the Caribbean."
"It's difficult to believe that the intentions to restore bilateral relations are sincere when such unfriendly actions are taken," said the statement, which was published by the state-run Bolivarian News Agency.
The ministry said Clinton's remarks "reflect a profound lack of knowledge about our reality."
Relations between the U.S. and Venezuela soured during the Bush administration, with Chavez urging the region's leaders to reject the influence of what he calls "the empire of the north."
Strains reached their low point last September, when Chavez expelled the U.S. ambassador and recalled his envoy to Washington.
But both Chavez and President Barack Obama expressed hope for improved relations with the change in U.S. administrations, and both nations recently restored their ambassadors.
Opposition leaders have been complaining in recent months about Chavez's taking over powers held by cities and states to erode the authority of opposition mayors and governors. He has defended the moves on national security grounds.
