Mexican Foreign Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez said Wednesday he believed bilateral relations between Mexico and Venezuela can be fully restored by January.

"I don't see any reason why January would arrive without a normalization" of relations, Derbez said to reporters.

The two countries called back their ambassadors from each other's capitals on Nov. 15 after a row arising from a dispute over the US-promoted Free Trade Agreement in the Americas (FTAA).

During the Summit of the Americas in Argentina last month, Mexican President Vicente Fox criticized Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez for opposing the FTAA.

Fox then made a speech that included thinly veiled criticism of Chavez, which incurred sharp words from the Venezuelan leader, causing the crisis in ties.

Source: Xinhua