MOSCOW, October 5. /TASS/. The government and the opposition in Venezuela managed to begin their dialogue despite US attempts to obstruct it, the Venezuelan president’s envoy to the talks, Adan Chavez, told reporters on Tuesday.

"One of the main achievements is that we managed to sit at the negotiating table, despite the US administration’s attempts to prevent it," Chavez, who is a brother of late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez, said when asked by a TASS correspondent to comment on the talks.

"We’ve managed to turn this format into a sustainable one, because it appears that <…> the vast majority of opposition forces made the decision to follow the path of democracy and refrain from the path of violence, which the US government imposed on them," the envoy continued.

According to Chavez, a "small group" of the opposition "keeps following [Washington’s] instructions and is trying to stage acts of violence in the country."

At the same time, he expressed certainty that unfriendly forces will fail in their attempts to undermine dialogue and stabilization in Venezuela.

According to the envoy, approximately 70,000 candidates will take part in the upcoming election in Venezuela, with thousands of them representing the opposition.

On August 13, the government and the opposition of Venezuela commenced talks in Mexico with Norway’s mediation. During the first round of talks, the sides signed a memorandum of understanding in order to confirm their readiness for dialogue. After these meetings, the coalition of opposition parties announced its intention to participate in regional elections, planned for November 21.