Caracas, Dec 2 (IANS): Venezuela's National Assembly, or Congress, has approved a second partial agreement for releasing blocked resources after a standoff that lasted over a year.

"It has been unanimously approved," said Jorge Rodriguez, president of the Assembly, after lawmakers at a legislative session debated the draft of the agreement to protect Venezuelans from the impact of US-led sanctions.

The agreement was signed last week in Mexico between the Venezuelan government and a sector of the opposition, the Unitary Platform coalition, reports Xinhua news agency.

Rodriguez said it was a "reason to be proud" that two young deputies were in charge of presenting the draft and debating the scope of the agreement.

The opposition deputy Luis Parra said he valued the ongoing negotiations with the government, adding "it is what moves us to continue promoting a representative dialogue in the country".

He also called for continuing the campaign to unfreeze Venezuelan funds frozen by the sanctions, saying "as Venezuelans we will always defend the homeland".