The United States on Tuesday accepted the preliminary results of Venezuela's recall referendum in which incumbent President Hugo Chavez won a majority of support.

"We will join the group of friends of Venezuela in acknowledging the preliminary results of the referendum and notingthat they show that President Chavez received the support of the majority of voters," State Department deputy spokesman Adam Ereli said at a news briefing.

"This is an important end to Venezuela's political crisis," Ereli said.

However, Ereli noted that there were still some concerns about some voting issues.

"We call on international observers to help conduct a transparent audit that will address those remaining concerns as part of a process of national reconciliation," Ereli said.

The US acknowledgment came one day after Venezuelan National Elections Council announced that Chavez survived the recall referendum with 58 percent of voters voting "no" to Chavez's recall and 42 percent voting "yes".

Chavez's opponents, who accused the former parachuter-turned president of ruling the country as a dictator and devastating the economy, denounced the results as rigged.

Chavez has repeatedly accused the United States of supporting his opponents bent on ousting him.

The recall referendum was put to voters after Chavez' opposition succeeded in collecting 3.4 million signatures in late 2003, a number much higher than the legal threshold of 2.4 millionneeded to trigger a recall.

A total of 13 percent of oil consumed in the United States is supplied by Venezuela, the world's No. 5 crude exporter.

Source: Xinhua