Western Hemisphere
The Colombian government is still interested in having Colombia-Venezuela relations back to normal in the midst of one of the worst crises ever undergone by the two countries, said on Tuesday Colombian Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaime Bermúdez, on visit to Ecuador.

Bermúdez noted, however, that some important issues are yet to be discussed.

"With Venezuela we have never closed the possibility of dialogue, of speaking. President (of Colombia Álvaro) Uribe called President (of Venezuela Hugo) Chávez on several occasions, as I did with (Venezuelan) Minister of Foreign Affairs (Nicolás) Maduro," Bermúdez said during a press conference in the city of Cotacachi, AFP reported.

"This door remains open; we are aware that there are sensitive subjects; we have very important remarks to make with the Venezuelan government, but we also are determined to be able to have the best relations with that countries, like all other countries in the hemisphere," he added.

Chávez froze the ties with Colombia last July, due to an agreement executed by Colombia and the United States that enables US troops to operate in at least seven Colombian military bases.

Links have been more and more strained because of the recent killing on the border of eight Colombian civilians and two Venezuelan militaries.