WASHINGTON — Newly-inaugurated Honduran President Porfirio Lobo is taking his country "in the right direction," but the United States has not decided whether to restore aid to Honduras, a US official said Wednesday.

Arturo Valenzuela, US assistant secretary of state for western hemisphere affairs, told reporters by telephone from Tegucigalpa that the United States would evaluate the situation in Honduras before restarting assistance.

"We haven't made any determinations yet," said Valenzuela, in Honduras for Lobo's inauguration Wednesday, which capped months of political crisis sparked by the June 28 overthrow of former president Manuel Zelaya.

Zelaya's ouster sparked international condemnation and prompted several countries, including the United States, to suspend assistance to the country.

But as the country's interim leadership moved forward with elections that saw Lobo declared Honduras' next president, several governments have softened their stances.

"The new president of Honduras has taken the country in the right direction," Valenzuela said.

The US diplomat said there was "a lot of enthusiasm" in Tegucigalpa as Lobo was inaugurated, and pledged that the United States would be "evaluating" the situation.

"Things are moving pretty much in the right direction," he said, adding that he had held "a very cordial meeting" on Tuesday with Zelaya.

The ousted leader left Honduras on Wednesday for the Dominican Republic after spending months cooped up in the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa in a failed bid to seek reinstatement.

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