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CARACAS, July 2-- Venezuela and the European Union (EU) have agreed to promote their diplomatic contact "at the highest level," Venezuelan Foreign Affairs Minister Jorge Arreaza said in Caracas on Thursday. The two parties issued a joint communique after Arreaza spoke by phone with the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell. In an interview with Caracas-based news network Telesur, Arreaza said he held a "very frank, very sincere and at the same time very cordial" conversation with Borrell on Wednesday. During their conversation, the two sides pledged to maintain "constant and permanent communication," as expressed in the joint communique, said Arreaza. According to the communique, the two parties "agreed on the need to maintain the framework of diplomatic relations, especially at times when cooperation between both parties can facilitate the path of political dialogue." The Venezuelan government decided to rescind the decision taken on June 29, 2020, by which Ambassador Isabel Brilhante Pedrosa, head of the delegation of the European Union in Caracas, was declared persona non grata, the communique said. "They both agreed to promote diplomatic contacts between the parties at the highest level, within the framework of sincere cooperation and respect for international law," it added. Arreaza said the joint communique "is a clear sign of recognition, in diplomatic terms," of the government of President Nicolas Maduro. | 
