Brasilia, June 18 (RHC) –- Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff held talks on Tuesday with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, in the first trip to Brasilia by a senior White House representative since the revelations of U.S. espionage against Brazil.

In a statement released shortly after the meeting, Biden said he was confident relations with Brazil would recover from the damaging revelations of U.S. espionage.

He said his conversation with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff was "candid" and that he had promised Rousseff the United States government would address on-line privacy.

According to information leaked by former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden last year, the U.S. government carried out a widespread scheme of espionage in Brazil that lasted for several years.

The communications, phone calls and e-mails of millions of Brazilian citizens were monitored. The scheme also targeted Rousseff, high-profile government officials and Brazil's state-controlled oil and gas giant Petrobras.

Rousseff cancelled a state visit to Washington last year after the spying was revealed and reprimanded the U.S. at the UN General Assembly, calling for global governance of the Internet so no one country would have undue control over the medium.

Rousseff has indicated she is ready to move on in order to boost trade, offshore oil development and other cooperative ventures between the two countries.

After his visit to Brazil, Biden arrived in Colombia on Tuesday to seek closer relations with one of Washington's key allies in South America. Biden will meet President Juan Manuel Santos to discuss issues concerning bilateral ties, the peace process involving Colombia's rebel groups, and a cooperation plan to support post-conflict development once the peace agreements are fulfilled.

Biden will also visit the Dominican Republic and Guatemala.