Venezuela has suspended a threat to restrict or ban flights by US airlines after the two governments agreed to negotiations to end a dispute over aviation rights, the US ambassador to Caracas said on Thursday.
Venezuela threatened in February to curtail flights by American Airlines, Continental Airlines and Delta Air Lines from March 30 if the US Federal Aviation Administration did not lift decade-old limits on Venezuelan airlines flying to US airports.
The airline spat has fuelled tensions between Washington and the government of left-wing President Hugo Chavez, who has clashed with American officials over his alliance with Cuba and his opposition to US free-market proposals in South America.
"The FAA is sending a technical team to Venezuela. They will arrive at the weekend. ... I understand they will be staying until these problems are resolved," Ambassador William Brownfield told local Globovision news television.
"For their part, the Venezuelan government has decided to suspend the measures they were going to apply against US airlines from March 30," he said. Officials at Venezuela's INAC aviation authority could not immediately be reached for comment.
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