Officials from the United States say the American secretary of state, Madeleine Albright, and her Mexican counterpart, Rosario Green, have agreed to disagree on the renewal of Cuba's membership of the Organisation of American States.

Sources from both delegations - meeting at the OAS General Assembly in Venezuela - said they had discussed Cuba, but not Mexico's proposal made at yesterday's opening session that a group be set up to look into the issue.

Mrs Green said she made the proposal because the deadlock had to be broken and, as she put it, it was no longer possible to ignore the reality of the situation.

Cuba, which had its OAS membership suspended in 1962, is the only country in the region to have been prevented from joining the organisation.