CARACAS, January 9. /TASS/. A US State Department delegation is arriving in Venezuela to restore diplomatic missions after the republic’s government decided to enter negotiations to resolve the consequences of US aggression and the kidnapping of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, according to a government statement published on the Telegram channel of Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto.

"The Bolivarian government of Venezuela has decided to initiate diplomatic negotiations with the US government aimed at restoring diplomatic relations in both countries in order to address the consequences of the aggression and kidnapping of the republic’s president and first lady, as well as to discuss issues of mutual interest," the statement said.

It added that "a delegation of diplomatic staff from the US State Department is arriving in the country to conduct a technical and logistical assessment related to diplomatic activities."

"Similarly, a delegation of Venezuelan diplomats will be sent to the United States," the document noted.

The Venezuelan government reiterated that the country had been the victim of a "criminal, illegal, and unlawful attack by the United States," which resulted in the deaths of more than 100 servicemen and civilians and the illegal abduction of the constitutional president and first lady, which it said constituted a serious violation of the personal inviolability of heads of state and the norms of international law.

Venezuela severed diplomatic relations with the United States in January 2019 after Washington recognized opposition figure Juan Guaido as the country’s interim president.