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The Venezuelan officials were being asked to depart because the unauthorized move violated international protocol

The State Department is asking officials at the Venezuelan consulate in Houston to leave the country after the South American government moved its offices in that city before receiving permission.

The Venezuelan officials were being asked to depart because the unauthorized move violated international protocol, Nicole Thompson, a State Department spokeswoman, said Saturday.

One consular officer was being allowed to remain temporarily in Houston so that Venezuela can continue to operate a consulate until a permanent location is approved, Thompson said.

The dispute stems from the Venezuelan Consulate’s request in August to move to another Houston location. Before the State Department issued its approval, U.S. officials learned the consulate had already leased space and began operations at the new location. The State Department ordered Venezuela on Oct. 2 to cease operations, and when it hadn’t, the U.S. revoked their privileges on Oct. 31.

Consulate staff and officials were then “invited to depart the United States,” Thompson said.

“Until Venezuela makes its request … we will continue to work with them to resolve staffing,” she said.

The Houston Chronicle reported Saturday that the consular office was locked on Friday and a notice taped in the window said it would remain closed until further notice for reasons “beyond our control.” A similar notice was posted on the consulate Web site on Saturday.

Thompson said she did not have information on how many people were being asked to leave the U.S. or when.

Antonio Padrino, the consul general in Houston, declined comment Friday. “I’m leaving the U.S. now and can’t talk about the situation,” he said.

Angelo Rivero Santos, the deputy chief of mission at the Venezuelan Embassy in Washington, D.C., issued a statement saying “the situation which occurred in the General Consulate of Houston is of a technical nature relating to consular rules; it is not political.”

“The communication processes related to this mishap have already been improved. The Consulate is currently undergoing a transition process; we are working in conjunction with United States authorities in order to resume activities as soon as possible.”

The move comes following recent diplomatic strains between the two countries. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Sept. 11 ordered U.S. Ambassador Patrick Duddy to leave Venezuela. The next day, the State Department said it was expelling the Venezuelan ambassador to the United States. Chavez accused Duddy of conspiring against the Venezuelan government, a charge U.S. officials deny.

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