The United States is monitoring the situation in Venezuela with great concern as Hugo Chavez has returned to Venezuela's presidential palace, the White House said on Sunday.
"We deeply regret the violence and loss of life, and call on all Venezuelans to work peacefully to resolve this crisis," White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said in a prepared statement.
"The people of Venezuela have sent a clear message to President Chavez that they want both democracy and reform," Fleischer said. "The Chavez administration has an opportunity to respond to this message by correcting its course and governing in a fully democratic manner."
The United States welcomed and supported the decision by the Organization of American States to send immediately a fact-finding mission headed by Secretary General Cesar Gaviria to Venezuela to help re-establish democracy, Fleischer said.
He urged Chavez "to seize this opportunity to ensure legitimacy by reaching out to the political opposition, civil society, and to all democratic forces in Venezuela."
The United States expressed no regret last week when the Venezuelan military ousted Chavez. Instead, it accused the government of Chavez of provoking a crisis in Venezuela that led to its downfall after street fighting.
"Details are still unclear, but what we do know is that actions encouraged by the Chavez government provoked the crisis," Fleischer told reporters hours after Chavez resigned under pressure from military leaders on Friday.
Pedro Carmona, a businessman and co-leader of the protest, was named president by the military high command Friday.
But Chavez returned to the presidential palace by helicopter early Sunday after demonstrations by his supporters forced Carmona to step down.
(Xinhua News Agency April 15, 2002)
