Guatemala said on Monday it might back down from a fight with Venezuela for a seat on the UN Security Council in place of a compromise candidate, but only if Caracas did the same.
After three days and 35 rounds of inconclusive balloting last week, Guatemala led Venezuela by a margin of 20 to 30 votes in the 192-member General Assembly but still lacks the required two-thirds majority to win a Latin American seat on the 15-nation body.
"The idea of a third candidate has come up in New York and we are not closed to this possibility," Foreign Minister Gert Rosenthal told reporters. "But we have no intention of stepping down unilaterally. We would only do so in agreement with Venezuela, with a clear candidate in mind."
Guatemala is backed by US President George W. Bush's administration in the diplomatic struggle, and Venezuela sees the race as a battle against Washington and its UN ambassador, John Bolton.
Armed with oil money, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has tried to form an alliance with developing nations in Asia, Africa and the Middle East to challenge Washington's interests.
Failure to get into the Security Council would be a setback for his ambitions for a bigger international profile. Chavez caused a stir last month by calling Bush "the devil" in a speech at the United Nations.
Several Latin American countries have abstained from the vote and Chile has suggested picking a consensus candidate to end the stalemate.
Uruguay, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica and Panama have all been mentioned as possible alternatives, said Rosenthal.
"But there is no obvious candidate," he said. "And we fear the discussion could divide the region even more."
Voting resumes at the United Nations on Wednesday.