CARACAS, Venezuela - A high-ranking Venezuelan army commander charged the U.S. Embassy on Thursday with trying to persuade a group of Venezuelan military officers to hand over state secrets to the Pentagon.
Armed Forces Inspector Gen. Melvin Lopez said navy authorities had opened a judicial probe into the case, which could further chill relations between Washington and the world's fifth-largest oil exporter.
His comments came a day after Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel told reporters several low-ranking officers had been found passing state secrets to the U.S. Defense Department.
"They have found some links to the officials, that showed the U.S. Embassy was once again contacting and asking members of the armed forces for information," Lopez told Union Radio. "All this is under investigation."
U.S. Embassy officials said they had not been contacted by the Venezuelan government.
"We take any suggestions or declarations from any Venezuelan authority seriously," U.S. Ambassador to Caracas William Brownfield told local television. "When the Venezuelan government presents us with notification, we will respond."
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, a socialist leader allied with Cuba, has often charged Washington with trying to kill him or undermine his government since he survived a 2002 coup.
U.S. officials say Chavez's allegations are empty rhetoric aimed at stirring up nationalist fervor among his supporters. They call Chavez anti-democratic and a growing threat to regional stability.
Alonso Medina, an attorney for one man held in the probe, said his client had been detained for espionage and threatening the security of the armed forces. The lawyer said the man -- a dentist whose son-in-law is a retired Venezuelan naval officer living in Miami -- had been accused of having ties to the U.S. Embassy.
Ties between Venezuela and the United States have frayed since Chavez was elected in 1998 on promises to use the country's oil wealth to improve the lives of the impoverished majority.
He regularly criticizes U.S. policy and has sought out ties with countries such as Cuba, Iran, Russia and China to reduce his country's traditional economic and military cooperation with Washington.
After Chavez survived the April 2002 coup and loyal troops returned him to power, he quickly purged the armed forces of suspected dissidents. Scores of purged officers fled the country, saying they feared persecution.
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