|
VENEZUELA AND IRAN STRENGTHEN TIES
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Venezuelan Minister of Foreign Affairs
Nicolás Maduro and Iranian President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad agreed on
Tuesday on the need for closer
cooperation between the two countries
and for strengthening the bilateral
agreements signed in the last few years.
According to a press release issued by
the Venezuelan Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, Maduro and Ahmadinejad agreed
"to strengthen the more than 200
agreements currently in force between
both countries in the framework of the
strategic friendship" linking both
nations.
Maduro is in Tehran to participate in a meeting of
Foreign Ministers of the Non-Aligned
Movement (NAM). During their meeting,
the two leaders reviewed the
international situation; expressed the
need to strengthen South-South
cooperation and paid special attention
to the world food crisis, according to
the statement. |
|
VENEZUELAN SHIP CARRYING COCAINE
INTERCEPTED IN SPAIN
MADRID, SPAIN --
A Venezuelan ship loaded with 2.5 tons
of cocaine was intercepted
sailing the high seas in the Atlantic
Ocean and five Venezuelans were detained
by a special unit of the Spanish police
during a counter-narcotics operation,
reported on Tuesday the Spanish Ministry
of the Interior.
Ship "Río Manzanares," with Venezuelan license plate, carried
80 packs of cocaine and was waiting to
hand the drug over to "another ship
controlled by an organization of Spanish
drug traffickers" when it was
intercepted, according to a communiqué
from the ministry released by AFP.
The five members of the crew, all of them Venezuelan,
were detained onboard the watercraft.
The ship is being escorted to the Canary
Islands, to the west of Morocco. |
|
OPEC REGARDS CURRENT OIL PRICES AS
"ABNORMAL"
JAKARTA,
INDONESIA --
President of the Organization of
Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
Chakib Khelil called on Tuesday
"abnormal" nowadays' oil prices and said
that in an adequate context, they could
drop more than 35 percent.
"Should the dollar continue getting stronger and political
situation improve," concerning Iran,
long-term oil prices could be "around
USD 78," Efe quoted. In this way, the
OPEC president echoed the assumption of
most member states, which have said time
after time that the present hike is not
a matter of supply.
Khelil added that if oil prices start falling, OPEC
member states should not reduce their
supply to favor the downward trend and
take them below the levels recorded over
the past few months. The OPEC president
considered also that expensive oil has
not cut the demand |
|
ANTI-DRUG AGENCY AWAITS HUGO CHAVEZ
ORDER FOR AGREEMENT WITH THE US
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA--
The head of the National Anti-drug
Office (ONA), Colonel Néstor Luis
Reverol Torres, refrained from
reporting on the steps taken to resume
counter-narcotics cooperation with the
United States. "Mr. President (Hugo
Chávez) is the one who leads
international affairs and we are waiting
for an instruction in this regard," he
clarified.
Last July 5th, President Chávez talked briefly with US
Ambassador Patrick Duddy at the end of
the military parade to commemorate
Venezuela's Independence Day. On that
occasion, the head of state voiced
interest in refreshing the dialogue with
the US government and renewing
anti-narcotics cooperation. In addition,
Reverol Torres claimed to have no news
of any member of the Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC)
detained in the headquarters of the
Directorate for Intelligence, Security
and Prevention (Disip). "I have no
information in this regard," he said.
The ONA director headed a ceremony to start a program
entitled Training Program for Judges and
Prosecutors in the Criminal Procedure
related to the Crime of Money
Laundering. He noted that the initiative
is part of the government strategy to
train judges, prosecutors and citizens'
organizations to crack down on money
laundering, not only in the financial
sector, but also in the areas of
building, accommodation and lodging, and
gambling. |
|
GABRIEL CULMA ORTIZ, A FARC MEMBER,
ALLEGEDLY ARRESTED IN VENEZUELA
CARACAS, VENEZUELA--
According to unofficial sources, Gabriel
Culma Ortiz,
alias "Guillermo," an alleged member of
the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
(FARC), was arrested by agents of
Venezuela's Directorate of Intelligence
and Prevention Services (Disip).
National
and international media said on Sunday,
citing unofficial sources, that
"Guillermo" was reportedly arrested on
Friday July 25 in San Carlos de Morroa,
Amazonas state, by members of the
Venezuelan National Guard (GN). Some
newspapers such as Mexico's El
Universal; Ecuador's El Comercio; and
news agency Ansa Latina reported this
information.
Culma
Ortiz has been linked to Alexander
Farfán, alias "Enrique Gafas" and to
Gerardo Aguilar, alias "César," who were
arrested on July 2 during a Colombian
government military operation that led
to the rescue of 15 FARC hostages,
including former presidential candidate
Ingrid Betancourt. |
|
COLOMBIAN GOVERNMENT PURSUES EXTRADITION
OF FARC GUERRILLA GABRIEL CULMA ORTIZ
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA--
Colombian authorities made a
formal application to Venezuela for the
extradition of Gabriel Culma Ortiz,
alias "Guillermo," a member of the
Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC)
detained by the Venezuelan National
Guard last July 25th in southern
Amazonas state, reported Colombian
government sources. An answer from
Caracas was awaited, as the guerrilla
member violated migration rules and
investigations are being conducted to
ascertain whether he committed
additional crimes.
Venezuelan authorities have provided not information
about the 38-year-old rebel. However, it
was reported that he is being held in
the headquarters of Directorate for
Intelligence, Security, and Prevention (Disip).
Guillermo was the kingpin responsible
for border affairs and finance in the
FARC first squad, the same group that
held the 15 hostages who were rescued
last July 2nd during a raid of the
Colombian army. The hostages included
Colombian ex presidential candidate
Ingrid Betancourt and three US citizens.
Intelligence sources added that the rebel was the
partner of Nancy Condo Rubio, alias
"Doris Adriana," the regional head of
finance and provisioning of the FARC
first front who was captured on February
2nd. In addition to his participation in
four terrorist attacks on Colombian
military bases in the 1990's, Guillermo
was in touch with Mono Jojoy, a member
of the FARC Secretariat and with César
and Enrique Gafas, the guards of the 15
hostages. |
|
HUGO
CHAVEZ ACCUSES PRESIDENT BUSH OF
REIGNITING COLD WAR
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA--
Hugo Chávez accused his US
counterpart George W. Bush of trying "to
revive the Cold War" and "outlining new
aggressions against Cuba," in a letter
sent to Cuban leader Fidel Castro that
was published on Monday by several Cuban
daily newspapers.
"Bush, faced with his inevitable decline, wants to
bring the Cold War back to life," Chávez
wrote. "The fact that Russia has stood
up, has outraged the hawks. Using the
multinational media outlets, they
purport to push the fear button." "In
this sense, the fallacies they are
fabricating against Cuba and Venezuela
are deliberate," denounced Chávez.
In the letter sent to his "beloved father Fidel," the
Venezuelan leader claims that "a new
attempt of aggression has been launched
against Cuba. And not only against Cuba,
for Venezuela is also targeted. That is
the reason why the empire is making all
sorts of verbal provocations." |
|
COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE BETS ON
HIS "FRIEND" HUGO CHAVEZ "TRANSPARENT
ATTITUDE"
BOGOTA, COLOMBIA--
Colombia has to bet that the
attitude shown by Venezuelan President
Hugo Chávez regarding Bogotá is
"transparent," in order to strengthen
renewed bilateral relations, Colombian
Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaime
Bermúdez said in an interview with
Bogotá-based newspaper El Tiempo,
published on Sunday. Although Bermúdez
said that he had not yet talked with his
Venezuelan counterpart Nicolás Maduro,
he plans to propose a formal meeting
with the Venezuelan Foreign Minister to
put the bilateral agenda back on track.
"I want to say that we are willing to discuss all the
topics of the agenda that our presidents
ordered us to advance, namely bilateral
cooperation, business, trade and
binational projects," Bermúdez stressed.
The Colombian diplomat said that his
government would request the appointment
of a Venezuelan Ambassador to Colombia,
as President Chávez last March withdrew
his envoy from Bogotá.
"We trust that he (Chávez) has a transparent attitude,"
said Bermúdez when questioned about the
doubts expressed by some Colombian
experts and political organizations with
respect to the candor behind the change
in Chávez's attitude. Bermúdez barely
commented on the news about the possible
Venezuelan purchases of Russian weapons.
"These are sovereign decisions of the
states," the diplomat said. |
|
COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE
RECOMMENDS "DISCREET" WORDING ABOUT HIS
"FRIEND" HUGO CHAVEZ
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA--
Colombian President Álvaro Uribe
asked his government, for the second
time thus far in July, to use a
"discreet, proper" wording in reference
to Venezuela-related issues in order to
fully restore bilateral relations.
Uribe "has instructed the Foreign Ministry, and also the
whole administration, to diligently
advance in terms of integration and the
bilateral agenda with Venezuela.
Therefore, action should be taken in an
assertive way and based on a discreet
wording appropriate for bilateral
integration," stated the government in
an e-mailed communiqué.
In search of such full restoration of relations and in
order to resume the agenda of joint
projects, Venezuelan Minister of Foreign
Affairs Nicolás Maduro and his Colombian
counterpart Jaime Bermúdez will meet in
August, added the communiqué, but no
information about the date or venue of
the meeting was provided. |
|
CUBAN
DICTATOR RAUL CASTRO FAILS TO ANNOUNCE
REFORMS
HAVANA,
CUBA --
Raul Castro warned Washington
that Cuba would keep its defenses up no
matter who wins November's U.S.
presidential election, but failed to
announce any new changes to the
communist system during a speech
Saturday. In a 48-minute Revolution Day
address, Castro also told Cubans to
prepare for tough times ahead as rising
oil and commodity prices take a toll on
the island's economy.
Amid anticipation that he would use the
speech to unveil fresh reforms, Castro
instead focused on the past as he spoke
to thousands of supporters in front of
the Moncada military complex, where a
band of rebels led by he and his brother
Fidel launched an attack 55 years ago,
planting the seeds for the 1959 Cuban
revolution. "When we attacked the
Moncada, none of us dreamed of being
here today," Castro said in Santiago,
535 miles southeast of Havana, the
de-facto capital of the island's eastern
half.
He warned of more economic austerity for the already
poor island and commanded Communist
Party leaders to fulfill the promises
they make to the Cuban people.
"Regardless of our great wishes to solve
every problem, we cannot spend in excess
of what we have," Castro said. And he
vowed that Cuba would remain prepared
for any potential U.S. attack regardless
of who wins the U.S. presidential vote,
which pits Barack Obama against Sen.
John McCain. "We shall continue paying
special attention to defense, regardless
of the results of the next presidential
elections in the United States," Raul
said. |
|
AT
LEAST 45 DEAD, 110 WOUNDED IN SERIAL
BLASTS IN INDIA
AHMADABAD, INDIA --
An
official says the death toll from serial
blasts that hit the western Indian state
of Ahmadabad has risen to 45. State
government spokesman Jaynarayan Vyas did
not say how many people were wounded.
The city's police control room earlier
Sunday said 110 people had been injured
in the 16 blasts that went off in
several neighborhoods of the busy city
on Saturday evening.
Several Indian cities have been hit by
serial blasts in recent months. The
attacks that have been blamed on Islamic
militants. Narendra Modi, the chief
minister of Gujarat state where
Ahmadabad is located, called the blasts
"a crime against humanity," and said the
state government would cover the medical
costs of all those wounded in the
attacks.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for either set
of blasts, and it was not clear if they
were connected but Modi said that the
attacks appeared to be masterminded by a
group or groups who "are using a similar
modus operandi all over the country."
Prithviraj Chavan, a junior minister in
the prime minister's office, called the
explosions "deplorable" and said they
were set off by people "bent upon
creating a communal divide in the
country" — language officials usually
use when blaming Islamic militants
believed to be behind bombings that have
repeatedly hit India's cities in recent
years. |
|
COLOMBIA ACCUSES DANIEL ORTEGA AT THE
OAS FOR HELPING THE FARC
WASHINGTON,
D.C. -- Colombia
and Nicaragua clashed fiercely
Tuesday, during a meeting of the
Organization of American States (OAS) in
Washington. Colombia demanded respect
from the central American country and
called President Daniel Ortega’s
attitude aggressive and abusive.
“We must denounce here that the Nicaraguan government
protects, promotes and excuses
terrorism. The absurd statements of
President Ortega collide with the
reality of the continent, where
President Uribe is respected for his
struggle against terrorism, crime and
especially drug trafficking, which is
the main reason of existence of Ortega’s
comrades, the FARC,” Colombian
ambassador to the OAS, Camilo Ospina
said.
The ambassador assured that the Nicaraguan president’s stance
was offensive for all Colombians. “The
attitude of President Ortega hurts and
offends the Colombian people. Colombia
demands respect,” he said. In response,
Nicaraguan ambassador to the OAS, Denis
Moncada, repeated his government’s
accusation that Colombia is guilty of
state terrorism. The two countries
weren’t able to come any closer during
the debate. |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ SAYS THAT INCIDENT WITH
SPANISH KING HAS BEEN LEFT BEHIND
MADRID,
SPAIN --
Hugo Chávez who is waited for in
Spain on Friday as part of an European
tour, declared on Thursday in Lisbon
that the incident with Spain's King Juan
Carlos is over.
Last year, during a Spanish-Latin American summit held last
year in Chile, the monarch asked Chávez
to "shut up."
Asked by a reporter if the incident had come to an end,
Chávez answered: "I would say so," AFP
quoted. "Now, I am certain that I will
talk since my arrival through my
departure. I will talk a lot tomorrow,"
said the Venezuelan head of state after
a meeting with Portuguese socialist ex
President Mario Soares in Lisbon. Ending
last year, Chávez demanded an apology
from King Juan Carlos for being, in his
opinion, disrespectful to him. |
|
JOHN
MCCAIN CLAIMS HUGO CHAVEZ EMBODIES A
DISTURBING TREND IN LATIN AMERICA
SAO
PAULO, BRAZI --
Brazil represents the type of
leadership needed in Latin America to
counter "disturbing" trends such as
Venezuela's, the US Republican
presidential candidate John McCain said
in an interview published by Brazilian
newspaper O Estado de Sao Paulo.
"There are disturbing trends in the region, like the
anti-American socialism of Hugo
Chávez... Against these trends, Brazil
represents something totally different,
a successful country with a brilliant
future," said McCain in an e-mail
interview.
According to the candidate, Brazil represents "the sort of
leadership America should welcome in the
hemisphere." |
|
VENEZUELAN AUTHORITIES FAIL TO MEET WITH
U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
In an effort to determine whether the
Venezuelan government actually
intends to resume anti-drug cooperation
with the United States, David Robinson,
the US State Department's Special
Coordinator for Venezuela arrived Monday
in Caracas.
While Robinson planned to meet with a number of Venezuelan
officials to address the issue, the
Venezuelan Ministry of Foreign Affairs
said Tuesday that they have no scheduled
meeting with the Special Coordinator for
Venezuela.
On the one hand, Foreign Minister Nicolás Maduro is
accompanying President Hugo Chávez in
his tour of Europe. Further, none of the
Venezuelan Vice-Ministers of Foreign
Affairs was authorized to meet with
Robinson. The US government was hopeful
to resume anti-drug cooperation, after
an informal talk between the US
Ambassador to Venezuela, Patrick Duddy,
and President Hugo Chávez. |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ ALLIES WITH LUKASHENSKO
AGAINST US HEGEMONY
MINSK,
BELARUS --Hugo
Chávez vowed to work with Belarus
to defeat "hegemonic" US imperialism.
The Belarusian President, who was
described by Chávez as a "brother" has
also long railed against the influence
of the United States in world affairs.
However, some Western nations accuse
Lukashenko of flouting freedom of speech
and assembly in 14 years in power.
"You and I are fighting against the same
enemy. Our peoples are struggling
against the same adversary: Imperialism;
we have to name it correctly: US
imperialism and countries which serve as
lackeys of that imperialism," Chávez
said after receiving the "Friendship of
Nations" award from the Belarusian
leader, Reuters reported. "Fortunately,
the imperialist hegemonic aim has
collapsed. American imperialism will
continue to fall," Chávez added.
Lukashenko was more reserved during the ceremony held
in a square named after Venezuelan hero
Simón Bolívar, praising Belarus'
alliance with Venezuela and calling for
the creation of a "multi-polar" world.
"No president of any other country has
done as much as this man for our country
since our independence," he said,
referring to Chávez. "No one deserves
this award more than you, Hugo. Please
look after yourself," Lukashenko said. |
|
EVO
MORALES: VENEZUELAN HELICOPTER CRASH IS
NOT FORTUITOUS
LA
PAZ, BOLIVIA --
Bolivian President Evo Morales
harbored suspicions about a helicopter
that recently crashed, resulting in four
Venezuelan militaries dead.
"Surely is not by chance; something must be happening," said
Morales. A Super Puma chopper granted by
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez fell
down last Sunday in central Bolivia,
shortly after being used by the Bolivian
government.
Morales said during a rally that the accident was not
fortuitous. In this way, he echoed his
followers' remarks who |
|
DOCUMENT SUPPOSEDLY PROVING VENEZUELA'S
PARTICIPATION IN BOLIVIAN TERRORIST
ATTACK DISCLOSED
LA
PAZ, BOLIVIA --
The owner of a Bolivian car leasing
company disclosed a group of
contracts indicating that the car used
in a dynamite attack against an
opposition TV channel were paid by the
Venezuelan Embassy, several Bolivian
newspapers reported.
Roberto Buitrago, the owner of Imbex Rent a Car,
appeared before the Bolivian Senate
Committee investigating the attack and
submitted a group of documents according
to which the Venezuelan Embassy rented
at least eleven vehicles in the name of
three members of a Bolivian
anti-terrorist group allegedly involved
in the attack.
According to the documents, the cars that were used in
the bomb attack against a relay antenna
of Unitel TV channel were among the
vehicles rented by the Venezuelan
Embassy. |
|
VICE-PRESIDENT DENIES THAT VENEZUELAN
PLANE CARRIED FARC COMMANDERS
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Venezuelan Vice-President Ramón
Carrizález denied that a plane
owned by state oil company Petróleos de
Venezuela (Pdvsa) had carried members of
the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
(FARC) from Venezuela to Nicaragua and
said that the report was an intention to
"hide the achievements" of President
Hugo Chavez's tour to Europe.
Carrizález said that reports about the use of a Venezuelan
plane to carry FARC members; the
construction of a Russian base in
Venezuela and the spending of USD 33
billion on military equipment are
"completely false" and came from the
"international media empire" that seek
to denigrate Chavez's achievements.
Carrizález said that Venezuelan government respects the
independence of the judiciary. He did
not express any opinion about the
petition of the opposition parties to
the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) to
deliver a prompt judgment about the list
of banned candidates issued by the
Comptroller General Office. |
|
RUSSIA DENIES REPORTED CUBA BASE PLANS
MOSCOW,
RUSSIA --
The Russian Defense Ministry has
denied a newspaper report that Russia
was considering basing nuclear-capable
bombers in Cuba, Russian news agencies
reported Thursday. The newspaper
Izvestia this week cited an anonymous
top air force official as saying the
bombers could be based in Cuba as a
response to U.S. plans to place elements
of a missile-defense system in Eastern
European countries.
Defense Ministry spokesman Ilshat
Baichurin dismissed the report Thursday,
according to the Interfax and
RIA-Novosti news agencies. "We see this
sort of anonymous allegation as
disinformation and another media hoax,"
he was quoted as saying. Yes Moscow is
clearly angry about U.S. plans for
missile-defense sites in eastern Europe,
a situation U.S. officials have been
trying to diffuse.
Despite Cuba's one-time alliance with the former Soviet
Union, it seems unlikely that Cuban
leader Raul Castro would allow Russian
bombers on the island and risk the ire
of the U.S. government. Raul Castro has
been president only since February,
securing a seamless transition from his
brother Fidel, who ruled for nearly a
half-century. Raul has repeatedly said
he is willing to discuss the two
countries' differences in talks held on
equal terms with America's next
president. |
|
SPANISH JUDGE GARZON REQUESTED TO DETAIN
HUGO CHAVEZ chavez DURING HIS
VISIT TO SPAIN
MADRID,
SPAIN --
Ramón
Torregrosa, a Spanish citizen,
asked National Audience renowned judge
Baltasar Garzón to detain Venezuelan
President Hugo Chávez during his visit
to Spain next Friday.
The purpose would be questioning Chávez about the death
of Torregrosa's wife, Venezuelan Maritza
Ron, during the riots in Plaza Francia,
following a recall referendum on August
15th, 2004. According to the request
made to judge Garzón, the Venezuelan
president could provide further
information on the case of Ron, who was
presumably reached by a bullet shot from
Chávez's followers at opponents.
William Cárdenas, a representative of NGO Democratic
Platform of Venezuelans in Madrid, told
Europa Press that the individuals
responsible for the killing were
"pro-Chávez armed gangs, financed and
led by the President's Office." |
|
U.S. GENERAL WARNS AGAINST RUSSIAN
BOMBERS IN CUBA
WASHINGTON,
D.C. --
U.S.
general warns against Russian
bombers in Cuba
A top U.S. Air Force officer warned on
Tuesday that Russia would be crossing "a
red line" if it were to use Cuba as a
refueling base for nuclear-capable
bombers. Gen. Norton Schwartz, whose
nomination to become the Air Force's top
military officer is being considered by
the Senate, was asked at his
confirmation hearing how he would advise
U.S. policymakers if Russia were to
proceed with such a plan.
Russia's Izvestia newspaper this week quoted a "highly
placed source" as saying Russia could
land Tu-160 supersonic bombers nicknamed
"White Swans" in Cuba as a response to a
planned U.S. missile defense shield in
Europe, which Moscow opposes. "I
certainly would offer best military
advice that we should engage the
Russians not to pursue that approach,"
Schwartz told the Senate Armed Services
Committee.
"And if they did, I think we should stand strong and
indicate that that is something that
crosses a threshold, crosses a red line
for the United States of America."
Russian Defense Ministry officials have
tried to pour cold water on the report,
saying the newspaper story was written
under a false name and quoted a source
at an organization that did not exist. |
|
PRESIDENT BUSH SAID COLOMBIA HAS A
"HOSTILE NEIGHBOR" IN VENEZUELA
WASHINGTON,
D.C. --
"Colombia is faced with a hostile,
anti-American neighbor in Venezuela,
where the government forged an alliance
with Cuba, collaborated with the FARC
terrorists and provided a safe haven to
some FARC units," stated Bush.
US President George W. Bush one again lashed out at his
Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez,
despite the rapprochement efforts made
recently by diplomats in both countries.
In a speech delivered in the White House
on the occasion of Colombian
Independence Day celebrations, Bush
repeated exactly the same words he used
early in May. Then, a controversy arose
in connection with the computer files
seized from the Colombian Revolutionary
Armed Forces (FARC), which allegedly
proved links between Chávez and the
guerrilla.
"Colombia is faced with a hostile, anti-American
neighbor in Venezuela, where the
government forged an alliance with Cuba,
collaborated with the FARC terrorists
and provided a safe haven to some FARC
units," stated Bush. |
|
hugo chavez SAYS THAT RUSSIA, VENEZUELA
SHARE A COMMON FOREIGN POLICY
MOSCOW,
RUSSIA --
Hugo Chávez on Tuesday stressed
that Venezuela and Russia share a
perfect identity regarding foreign
policy, which has allowed him to upgrade
relations between both countries. In a
press conference offered to
international media in Moscow, the
Venezuelan ruler advised that during his
meeting with his Russian counterpart,
Dmitri Medvedev, several issues and
agreements were revised, reported
Venezuelan official news agency ABN.
Chávez expressed satisfaction over the agreements
signed and friendship offered to him by
Medvedev. He defended rearmament of the
Venezuela army as a response to what he
described as "aggressive plans" of the
US, and he reasserted his intention of
continuing the military cooperation with
Russia.
"We are going full ahead. We are reaming the Armed
Forces. We have already arranged the
delivery of (Russian-made fighter jet)
SU-30," said Chávez in a press
conference, as quoted by Russian news
agency Interfax. Likewise, he added that
Russian troops would be welcomed, in
case Moscow would like to locate a
military base on Venezuelan soil.
"Russia has enough potential to
guarantee its presence in several parts
of the world. If Russian Armed Forces
want to be in Venezuela, they would be
warmly welcomed," he stated. |
|
money destined for cuba democracy
programs has been frozen following
charges of massive fraud
WASHINGTON,
D.C. --
Congress has put the U.S. Agency for
International Development's $45 million
Cuba program's 2008 funding on hold,
following a series of troubling audits
and cases of massive fraud, In a quest
to get the funding hold lifted, U.S. AID
on Friday ordered a bottoms-up review of
all its Cuba democracy programs and
suspended a Miami anti-Castro exile
group that spent at least $11,000 of
federal grant money on personal items.
Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif., ordered
a hold on the U.S. AID Cuba program
funding last month, in part in response
to a $500,000 embezzlement at the Center
for a Free Cuba in Washington disclosed
earlier this year, federal officials
said. In a memo sent Friday to various
members of Congress, Stephen Driesler,
AID's deputy assistant administrator for
legislative and public affairs, said the
agency recently implemented stricter
financial reviews. That new review
turned up irregularities at the Grupo de
Apoyo a la Democracia (Group in Support
of Democracy), a Miami group criticized
in the past for using federal funds to
send Nintendo games to Cuba.
The executive director of Grupo de Apoyo admitted that
an employee used the organization's
credit card for thousands of dollars in
personal items and then billed them to
the grant aimed at bringing democracy to
Cuba, Driesler's memo said. The group's
funding has been suspended pending
further review. A report by the
Cuban-American National Foundation
released in May showed that less than 17
percent of $65 million in federal Cuba
aid funds spent during the past 10 years
went to ''direct, on-island
assistance.'' The bulk of the money, the
report said, went to academic studies
and expenses of exile organizations,
mostly in Miami and Washington. |
|
RUSSIA MAY SEND MILITARY AIRCRAFT BACK
TO CUBA ... OR VENEZUELA
MOSCOW,
RUSSIA --
Russia may send military aircraft
back to bases in Cuba in response
to U.S. plans to deploy elements of a
missile defense system in Europe,
Izvestiya reported, citing an
unidentified ``highly placed source.''
Both the supersonic Tu-160, a nuclear
bomber known as ``White Swan,'' and the
strategic bomber Tu-95, known to the
North Atlantic Treaty Organization as
the ``Bear,'' are capable of flying as
far as Cuba and Venezuela.
There are such discussions, but they're only
discussions,'' the paper cited a
``highly placed'' source on the staff of
Russia's long-distance strategic
aviation command as saying. ``I'm not
going to say that there's nothing
behind'' the talks. Russian
military-transport aircraft regularly
fly to Cuba, the paper said, carrying
out orders for private companies.
|
|
hugo chavez arrived in moscow for arms
spending spree
MOSCOW,
RUSSIA --
Hugo Chávez yesterday arrived in
Moscow on his latest arms-buying spree,
saying that his country needed to buy
more weapons to defend itself from the
United States. Chávez met Russia's
president Dmitry Medvedev this morning.
He is expected to sign a billion-dollar
arms deal with Russia for new missile
defense systems and diesel-powered
submarines.
"I have great hopes we will be able to
continue building our strategic
alliance," Chávez said after landing in
Moscow for a two-day trip. He added:
"The deals will guarantee the
sovereignty of Venezuela which is being
threatened by the United States."
Chávez's latest visit to Moscow – his
sixth – is likely to irritate
Washington. It comes at a time when
relations between Russia and the US are
already under strain over a host of
issues.
Moscow is vehemently opposed to the Bush administration's
plans to site a missile defence shield
in central Europe. It is also hostile to
Georgia and Ukraine's US-backed attempts
to join Nato. According to today's
Kommersant newspaper, Venezuela has a
long shopping list. It wants to buy 20
TOR-M1 air defence systems, three or
four diesel-powered submarines, and
Ilyushin war-planes. The potential deal
was worth $2bn, the paper said.
Venezuela is already the largest
purchaser of military hardware from
Russia in Latin America, and the second
biggest in the world after Algeria.
Chávez has already spent $4bn on Russian
arms. Past purchases have included
Sukhoi fighter jets, helicopters and
rifles. |
|
VENEZUELAN
FORMER DEFENSE MINISTER GENERAL RAUL
ISAIAS BADUEL REPORTS ASSASSINATION
ATTEMPT
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Former Venezuelan Defense Minister
General Raúl Isaías Baduel
claimed on Monday that he was the victim
of an assassination attempt when he was
driving from Maracay, 50 miles west of
Caracas, to the Venezuelan capital.
According to the former close ally of Venezuelan
President Hugo Chávez, he was driving
with his son and he was attacked by two
armed men driving in a Toyota Yaris car.
Baduel said in a Venezuelan TV program
that the men shot his car three times.
Baduel appeared Monday morning in the Attorney General
Office to report the attack. |
|
FIVE DEAD, EVO MORALES SAFE AFTER
BOLIVIAN HELICOPTER CRASHES
LA
PAZ, BOLIVIA --
A Venezuelan military helicopter
often used to transport President Evo
Morales crashed in central Bolivia, but
Morales was not aboard and is safe,
Bolivia's defense minister said Monday.
Five crew members were reported killed.
Morales had used the Super Puma
helicopter on Saturday and was scheduled
to fly in it again on Monday, Defense
Minister Walker San Miguel told
reporters. He said those killed were
``people linked to presidential
transport.''
The cause of the accident has not yet
been determined, San Miguel added.
Bolivian state television showed images
of Morales visiting a rural district on
Monday. Morales uses two Super Puma
helicopters lent by the government of
leftist ally Venezuela for his travel
within Bolivia.
The helicopter took off about 3:30 p.m. local time
Sunday from Bolivia's central city of
Cochabamba, where it had stopped to
refuel. It was headed for the northern
Amazon city of Cobija when Cochabamba
air officials declared an emergency,
noting the chopper was down. It was not
located until dawn on Monday, when a
farmer reported the crash in the village
of Colomi, a mountainous area about 155
miles east of La Paz, San Miguel said.
San Miguel said officials went to the
crash site to investigate and recover
the bodies of the crew. |
|
EVO MORALES OFFERS SYMPATHIES FOR
VENEZUELAN FATALITIES
LA
PAZ, BOLIVIA --
Bolivian President Evo Morales
sent on Monday his sympathies to his
Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez for
the death of four Venezuelan militaries
who manned a helicopter made available
to him that crashed on Sunday in a
central area of Bolivia.
The Bolivian head of state claimed to be "very sad" for the
occurrence resulting in four Venezuelan
militaries killed along with a Bolivian
pilot. The Super Puma crashed near the
city of Colomi, in central Cochabamba,
Efe reported.
"We have expressed our sympathies to President, Commander
Hugo Chávez, and voiced encouraging
words to the cooperating Venezuelan
people. I have deep sorrow, weeping and
mourning," said Morales. |
|
hugo chavez, lula da silva arrive in
bolivia for economic aid to morales
LA
PAZ, BOLIVIA --
Presidents
Hugo Chávez of Venezuela and Luiz Inácio
Lula da Silva of Brazil arrived
on Friday in the Bolivian Amazonian
region of Riberalta to meet with their
Bolivian counterpart Evo Morales.
The Venezuelan president landed in Riberalta airport at 13:15
local time (19:15 GMT) onboard a
helicopter of the Venezuelan air force.
Lula arrived 20 minutes later onboard
his presidential plane.
The presidents received the military homage in
Riberalta airport, located 900
kilometers to the northeast of La Paz,
and are meeting in a soccer stadium
where they are reporting on their aid to
Morales' road projects in Amazon.
According to Morales, Chávez will commit
an aid of USD 300 million for roads and
Lula will execute a USD 230-million loan
agreement for the same purpose. |
|
VENEZUELAN COMPTROLLER GENERAL CONFIDENT
THAT THE TRIBUNAL OF JUSTICE WILL UPHOLD
POLITICAL BANNING
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --Venezuelan
Comptroller General Clodosbaldo Russián
showed confidence that the
Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) will
uphold his move to ban public servants
from elected office.
"There are new rulings issued in 2008,
and all of them confirm the power of the
Office of the Comptroller to declare
political ineligibility of potential
candidates." "Such judgments are a
proof that we are enforcing correctly
the constitutional and legal mandate
and, as a result, the bans will be
upheld," the Comptroller General said.
When Russián referred to the draft ruling prepared by
Justice Pedro Rondón Haaz, he said: "Rondón
has the right to question and comment on
what others say. We have different
views. This is not a new thing." Supreme
Tribunal to decide on the Comptroller
General's power to ban public servants
from elected office. |
|
VENEZUELAN ANTI-GOVERNMENT ACTIVISTS
STAGE PROTEST AT HIGH COURT OVER
POLITICAL INELIGIBILITY
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --A
group of followers of opposition Un
Nuevo Tiempo (UNT) party rallied
on Friday in front of the Supreme
Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) to ask the
Constitutional Court to speak up on the
issue of political ineligibility.
The demonstration was aimed at "exerting pressure on
the justices in order to fulfill the
duty they were elected for, which is to
issue an opinion on the situation of the
individuals barred from elected public
office," said Gladys Castillo, the
party's Vice-President for the
Metropolitan Area.
"We are defending all Venezuelans' civil rights to
elect our candidates," she added. "The
Comptroller General cannot deprive us of
our right to dream of a safe, pleasant
city," Castillo said, in reference to
the decision of Comptroller General
Clodosbaldo Russián to ban a number of
persons upon the grounds of
administrative offenses. |
|
US HELPS MEXICO FIND DRUG SUBMARINE WITH
5.8 TONS OF COCAINE
MEXICO
CITY, MEXICO --
Homeland Security Secretary Michael
Chertoff said Friday that U.S.
intelligence led Mexican forces to a
small submarine captured this week
packed with 5.8 tons of cocaine. U.S.
intelligence helped the Mexican navy
seize a submarine packed with 5.8 tons
of cocaine, Homeland Security Secretary
Michael Chertoff said Friday. The drugs
were packed in the black bundles that
are shown here at the port of Salina
Cruz, Mexico.
Chertoff called the vessel's seizure
Wednesday off Oaxaca state in southern
Mexico "a great example of our
cooperation." "We shared information
with the Mexican navy, but the Mexican
navy acted alone in actually executing
the seizure," Chertoff told a news
conference in Mexico City. Mexican navy
Vice Adm. Jose Maria Ortegon said the
30-foot (10-meter) green submarine was
equipped with GPS and a compass, and its
crew had planned to drop off its
shipment on Mexican shores. The navy has
since stepped up patrols in the area.
Authorities arrested four Colombian crew members who claim to
be fishermen forced by drug cartels to
move the cargo. They say they left the
Colombian port of Buenaventura about a
week ago. Similar makeshift submarines
carrying drugs have been discovered off
Colombia and Central America, but the
navy says the seizure is a first for
Mexico. Chertoff, who is on a three-day
trip to meet with Mexican security
officials, said drug cartels are
increasingly relying on the subs to
smuggle cocaine to the United States. |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ WILL MEET KING JUAN CARLOS
AND RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO ON JULY 25
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --Hugo
Chávez will have a meeting next
week with Spanish King Juan Carlos and
Head of Government José Luis Rodríguez
Zapatero, Spanish news media reported,
citing official sources.
The meeting with the Spanish King
will take place on Friday 25 in Palma de
Mallorca, the capital city of Mallorca,
an island east of Spain. Chávez will
travel the same day to Madrid where he
will meet Rodríguez Zapatero at the
Moncloa Palace.
Spanish Deputy Prime Minister María Teresa Fernández de
la Vega previously declared on Friday
that the government of José Luis
Rodríguez Zapatero had not set a date
for the visit to Spain of the Venezuelan
president. However, some Spanish news
media reported, citing official sources,
that Chávez will meet King Juan Carlos
and Rodríguez Zapatero next Friday 25. |
|
NICARAGUAN PRESIDENT DANIEL ORTEGA SAYS
WON'T LET ENEMIES DEPOSE HIM
MANAGUA,
NICARAGUA --
Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega
warned his political adversaries on
Saturday that he would not allow them to
depose him as opposition groups planned
street protests against his government.
"We love peace, but we are also ready to
use the steel of war if they try to
bring down this" government, Ortega said
in a speech.
Ortega, a leftist who fought
U.S.-backed
Contra rebels during his first stint as
head of state in the 1980s, returned to
power last year after beating
conservative rivals in an election.
Thousands of people took to the streets
on June 27 to protest Ortega's handling
of the economy and the exclusion of two
small parties from municipal elections
last year, though the country's largest
opposition party did not participate
actively in the march.
Protesters that day chanted slogans that called Ortega a
dictator.
Nicaragua
is one of
Latin America's
poorest countries. Opposition leaders
are planning another protest on Friday.
Ortega, an ally of leftist
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez,
repeated accusations on Saturday that
the U.S. government is funding the
opposition groups. "Those that are
conspiring, who are openly financed by
the Yankees, better respect the
institutional norms in this country.
They better not provoke the people," he
said. |
|
VENEZUELAN FOREIGN MINISTER NICOLAS
MADURO SAID THE GOVERNMENT EXPECTS TO
ADVANCE RESPECTFULLY DIALOGUE WITH US
CARACAS, VENEZUELA--
The
next US government should
implement a respectful policy towards
Venezuela, said Venezuelan Minister of
Foreign Affairs Nicolás Maduro.
"The United States and its people, sooner than later,
will have to undertake a policy of
respect, of respectful relationship with
the new Latin America, with the new,
emerging country (Venezuela) and the
new, emerging leadership," he said.
Maduro lamented that so far, such a
relation has not been built with the US
government and put the blame for it on
US President George W. Bush.
"We bet on strengthening our hemisphere; always willing
to advance a respectful dialogue with
the people who rule the United States of
America. Such a thing has not been
possible with the dire, warlike and
failed administration of George W. Bush,
who is bidding farewell and has damaged
so much the planet and our hemisphere,"
added the minister. |
|
VENEZUELA FOREIGN MINISTER NICOLAS
MADURO HIGHLIGHTS STATE DEPARTMENT'S
"CONTRADICTIONS"
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --"The
contradictory remarks made by the
top US diplomat for Latin America,
Thomas Shannon, shows the tragedy that
characterizes the US foreign policy,
which has lost all its influence and
ability to dominate the whole region,"
said Venezuelan Minister of Foreign
Affairs Nicolás Maduro replying to the
statements made by US Department of
State Assistant Secretary for Western
Hemisphere Affairs Thomas Shannon.
On Thursday, Shannon voiced willingness to open a dialogue
with the Venezuelan government in a
statement before the Subcommittee on the
Western Hemisphere of the House of
Representatives. On the other hand, he
said that Chávez had hit the limits of
his international influence.
"We reject the remarks that Shannon made on our country,"
said Maduro in a press conference. He
added: "when the US is willing to sit at
a table on equal footing with our
country, we will be willing to talk
about the real issues of the
relationship between the United Stated
and Venezuela, without any hypocritical
positions." |
|
ASSISTANT SECRETARY THOMAS SHANNON SAID
HUGO CHAVEZ HIT THE LIMITS OF HIS
INTERNATIONAL INFLUENCE
WASHINGTON,
D.C. --Thomas
A. Shannon, the US Department of
State Assistant Secretary for Western
Hemisphere Affairs, said on Thursday
that there is "growing international
perception that Venezuela has hit the
limits of its international
influence," to the extent that President
Hugo Chávez is looking for a
rapprochement with the United States.
"Venezuela has, for the first time in many years,
expressed a willingness to explore
improved relations with the United
States. Chávez recently told our
Ambassador that he wanted to improve our
counter-drug cooperation, and remembered
with fondness when he could meet with
the U.S. Ambassador to discuss bilateral
issues. This comment was repeated
through Venezuela’s official news
agency." "We have told Venezuela that we
would like to explore this diplomatic
opening. Cooperation in the counter-drug
fight would be familiar ground for both
governments, and would be well received
in the region," Shannon said.
However, the US official added that the United States
"does not expect" any improvement in
bilateral relations as "the rhetoric and
reflexive anti-Americanism of the
Venezuelan government has damaged the
ability of Venezuela to communicate
effectively with us and many of its
neighbors. However, we remain committed
to a positive relationship with the
people of Venezuela and have the
patience and the persistence necessary
to manage our challenging relationship." |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ SAID RELATIONS WITH THE US
ARE UNLIKELY TO IMPROVE UNDER BARACK
OBAMA
CARACAS, VENEZUELA--
Hugo
Chávez said on Wednesday that
Venezuela's relations with Washington
are unlikely to improve if virtual
Democrat presidential candidate Barack
Obama wins November's election.
The Venezuelan ruler said both Democrat and Republican
candidates "advocate the interests of
the US empire." Therefore, nobody should
expect Venezuelan ties with the United
States to improve. Chávez is one of the
fiercest critics of the US foreign
policy as well as free market policies
promoted by the United States. Chávez
said recently that Obama wanted to
change the US policy towards Latin
America, "by applying carrot and stick
diplomacy." He ruled out the possibility
that that such approach may have any
positive effects.
Addressing the Democrat candidate, Chávez said: "Mr.
Obama, you should study what has been
happening in Latin America. If you have
not understood, a revolution has been
unleashed in this land." Chávez warned
that Venezuela will not bow to anyone.
|
|
HUGO CHAVEZ SAID THAT BARACK OBAMA "IS
SABOTAGING DIALOGUE"
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --HUGO
CHAVEZ
regretted that the Democrat candidate
for the US presidency was "sabotaging"
the likely dialogue with Venezuela and
Cuba Obama could launch if he won the US
presidential vote in November. "(Mr.
Obama) has said the he would be prepared
to sit down and talk with Cuba and
Venezuela if he wins the elections; but
the way the Democrat candidate is
behaving, he is sabotaging any
possibility of dialogue because is there
is anything we own, and we could lend
him a bit, is dignity," Chávez said.
Chávez made his remarks about Obama at a meeting held
in Caracas with members of his socialist
party who are running for November 23
regional elections for governors and
mayors. According to Chávez, "Obama
said recently: Chávez is destroying
Latin America or something like that.
But the empire is the real menace for
our countries; and he is a
representative of the empire."
Last weekend, Barack Obama said in an interview with
Efe that Chávez was "a destructive force
in the region." The Democrat candidate
was criticizing Chávez "undemocratic"
policies and his incendiary rhetoric
against the US. However, Obama said that
dialogue with Venezuela was still
possible. The Venezuelan Head of State
reiterated that people should not "build
up hopes" with an eventual victory of
Obama in the US presidential elections
since, according to Chávez, the only
solution to the threats of the US is the
fall of the empire. "This empire must
fall. That is the only solution for
Latin America to determine its own
fate," Chávez said. |
|
VENEZUELAN COMPTROLLER SUBMITS BARRING
LIST TO THE NATIONAL ELECTORAL COUNCIL
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --Comptroller
General Clodosbaldo Russián
submitted to the National Electoral
Council (CNE) the final list of
individuals banned from elected public
office, and justified once again the
legitimacy of his action by invoking
article 25 of the National Constitution
concerning his authority to impose
criminal and administrative penalties.
He said that the list was handed over as
soon as possible to "allow CNE to work
well in advance in such a way that, upon
commencement of the nomination process
for elected public office, they can
decide on which people are not banned
from performing these duties."
Russián added that the list was
delivered to make known that "for
operational reasons, for the time being,
the Comptroller General Office will not
issue further decisions on
disqualification." The official said he
"perfectly" understood that some people
included in the list had alleged that
the Comptroller General Office had no
power to ban anybody. However, he
maintained, his office "thought
otherwise." |
|
VENEZUELAN JUSTICE PEDRO RONDON HAAZ
PROPOSES TO NULLIFY ARTICLE ON POLITICAL
BANNING
CARACAS, VENEZUELA--
A
draft ruling prepared by Justice Pedro
Rondón Haaz declares the "partial
nullity" of article 105, Organic Law of
the Office of the Comptroller General
and the National Tax Monitoring System,
a regulation used by Comptroller General
Clodosbaldo Russián to declare political
ineligibility. Rondón Haaz distributed
last Monday the instrument among his
five colleagues at the Constitutional
Court of the Supreme Tribunal of
Justice, including the judiciary
president Luisa Estella Morales.
In the 62-page instrument, the judge
intends "partial nullity of article 105
(...) due to serious violation to the
Constitution by said rule that directly
damages the fundamental rights to
defense, due process, definition of
sanctions, political participation and
the right to elected public office."
Rondón Haaz substantiated his proposal
by saying that the challenged regulation
"restricts the exercise of political
rights by means of administrative
penalties, which openly runs counter to
articles 42 and 65 of the Constitution."
The member of the Constitutional Court maintained that
citizens may be deprived of their
political rights only in the face of a
conviction issued during a criminal
proceeding. "The lawmaker may not use
any mechanisms alternative to a final
court decree that imply the suspension
of fundamental rights of political
content. The only exception to this
general principle is the possibility
that the lawmaker determines certain
qualifications to apply for certain
public incumbencies," clarified Rondón
Haaz. |
|
VENEZUELAN HIGH COURT PRESIDENT: JUSTICE
RONDON'S DRAFT RULING IS NOT OUR OPINION
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --President
of Venezuela’s Supreme Tribunal of
Justice (TSJ) Luisa Estela de Morales
said that the draft ruling prepared by
Justice Pedro Rondón Haaz, where he
proposes to nullify the regulation under
which Comptroller General Clodosbaldo
Russián is empowered to declare
political ineligibility of some governor
and major candidates, has been neither
revised nor discussed by the rest of the
TSJ justices.
Morales deemed it necessary to make
“some clarifications” on the motions
filed with the high court in connection
with Russián's move to bar dozens of
public servants from elected office. “We
cannot say that we are expressing an
opinion since we do not have any.”
Morales explained the rules governing
the high court operations and the way
rulings are adopted. Regarding Rondón
Haaz's draft ruling, she added, "we
cannot assert that the Constitutional
Court, Supreme Tribunal of Justice, has
already made a judgment, let alone that
the draft ruling mirrors the
Constitutional Court's stance."
Morales denied that Rondón Haaz's draft ruling is a
final judgment of the Supreme Tribunal,
since it is only a proposal. Such a
suggestion can mislead people, as they
may think the draft ruling is "the
solution to the issue” of the banning on
potential candidates to governors and
mayors in next November vote. |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ, RAFAEL CORREA, DANIEL
ORTEGA KICK OFF AMBITIOUS OIL PROJECT IN
ECUADOR
EL
AROMO, ECUADOR --
Hugo Chávez and his Ecuadorian
counterpart Rafael Correa launched on
Tuesday a plan to build the largest
petrochemical plant in the South
American Pacific during a ceremony that
turned into mini-summit due to the
attendance at the very last minute of
Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega.
Concomitantly, the left-wing presidents
will meet to discuss Latin American
integration and the sensitive issue of
Colombia, with which the three of them
once broke or froze relations following
a raid by the Colombian army on a camp
of the Colombian Revolutionary Armed
Forces (FARC) last March 1st in
Ecuadorian territory.
The project prompted by the Ecuadorian and Venezuelan
presidents amounts to at least USD 6.6
billion, with a capacity to process
300,000 bpd of oil. The works are
expected to be completed by 2012,
according to both governments. Chávez
and Ortega plan to return to their
respective countries on this very
Tuesday. |
|
PERUVIAN CONGRESS DELVES INTO
IRREGULARITIES IN hugo
chavez'S MISSION
LIMA, PERU --
A
Peruvian Congressional Committee
agreed to investigate the medical
treatment provided to a number of
Peruvians with eye problems that were
treated under a Venezuelan health
program called Misión Milagro (miracle
mission), as some patients suffered
medical complications.
The Chairman of the Health Committee, Daniel Robles, said
that several Peruvian patients who
underwent surgery in Venezuela have
returned to Peru without any improvement
and are running the risk of losing
sight.
The pro-government lawmaker asked the Peruvian Ministry
of Health to report cases of people that
have suffered post-surgery medical
complications, as a local TV show
denounced last Sunday, DPA said.
Panorama TV show denounced that some
elderly women living in the Peruvian
countryside traveled by plane to Caracas
in order to undergo free eye surgery.
However, their health did not improve
after treatment. |
|
MOSCOW
CONFIRMS TALKS ON RUSSIAN-VENEZUELAN
BANK
MOSCOW,
RUSSIA --
Russian Finance Vice-Minister Dmitri
Pankin confirmed on Tuesday that
Moscow and Caracas have held talks on
the possibility of organizing a
Russian-Venezuelan state-owned bank to
fund bilateral projects.
"Venezuela has made that proposal and
that matter has been discussed on
several occasions," Pankin told
reporters, Efe quoted. The
second-in-command in the Russian Finance
added that Russian authorities have not
received yet the answers to some
questions asked to the Venezuelan
government.
The query includes composition of the bank initial
capital and amount, as well as the type
of operations. Hugo Chávez has said that
the organization of a Russian-Venezuelan
bank will be an item in the agenda to be
discussed with Russian President Dmitri
Medvedev, during his visit next week. |
|
HEROIC' FIGHTING REPELS AFGHAN
MILITANTS. NINE AMERICAN SOLDIERS KILLED
KUNAR,
AFGHANISTAN --
TALIBAN INSURGENTS who squared off with
U.S. soldiers in a major battle in
eastern Afghanistan overran a military
observation point just outside a
coalition outpost, but failed to take
the base, a U.S. military official said.
U.S.-led coalition, Afghan and NATO
officials were attempting to piece
together details about the confrontation
which occurred Sunday in Kunar province,
a location close to the Pakistan border.
"It was heroic fighting," said another
official, NATO spokesman Mark Laity,
describing the U.S.-led troop
performance. "They wanted to overrun
that base," he added, referring to the
militants. "They failed."
The fighting left nine U.S. soldiers
dead and 15 wounded. It marked the most
fatalities in an attack on U.S. troops
in Afghanistan in three years. An Afghan
official estimated that 100 militants
died or were wounded in the fighting. A
U.S. official said that as many as 200
insurgents were involved in the strike,
which NATO said occurred at an outpost
in Dara-I-Pech. However, other officials
could not put a figure on the number of
insurgent casualties at this time.
The official said militants didn't get into the outpost
but they did overrun a small U.S.-led
observation point outside the base,
where it is believed most of the
American and Afghan fatalities and
injuries occurred. Laity described the
insurgent strike as a "major attack" by
a "large group of insurgents." |
|
hugo
chavez claims colombian defense minister
juan manuel santos is sabotaging
agreements
CARACAS, VENEZUELA --
"I
respectfully but firmly ask (the
Colombian) President (Álvaro) Uribe:
Let's turn the page, but keep your
Defense Minister (Juan Manuel Santos) at
bay. Otherwise, we will not move on. It
would be impossible," said Venezuelan
President Hugo Chávez to his Colombian
counterpart, just 48 hours following a
meeting to mend bilateral relations.
During the Fifth Petrocaribe Summit,
held in Venezuela, Chávez said to the
Head of States of the Caribbean
countries that the Colombian Defense
Minister "is a threat" for the region,
recalling that Santos had previously
criticized ALBA and Petrocaribe.
"(Santos) has said that Chávez is the
first enemy of Colombia, a more
dangerous threat than the Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC). He
has said so and he is the Colombian
Defense Minister. He wants to become
president (...) I want to denounce here
that situation. I call for my friend,
President Uribe, to keep Santos at bay."
Uribe replied by issuing a statement urging "all
Colombian officials to be prudent in
their remarks about Venezuela, in order
to maintain the climate that made it
possible to restore diplomatic relations
with our neighbor." |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ, LULA DA SILVA O VISIT EVO
MORALES
LA
PAZ, BOLIVIA --
Bolivian President Evo Morales
confirmed on Monday a meeting on Friday
with his counterparts Luís Inácio Lula
da Silva of Brazil and Hugo Chávez of
Venezuela, during the opening ceremony
of a separating plant of liquefied
petroleum gas and gasoline.
"Our regards to President Lula, who will join
Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez on
Friday to secure some investments in
roadways in a supportive, unconditional
way," said Morales in the eastern region
of Santa Cruz, AP quoted.
The building of the facilities -on the initiative of
Chávez and Morales- was awarded to
company Catler Uniservice S.R.L.
Following an investment of USD 90
million, the plant will yield 260 tons
of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) per day
and 450 barrels of natural gasoline. The
Bolivian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
confirmed the arrival of the two
presidents on July 18th to witness the
progress of an inter-oceanic freeway
crossing Bolivia and linking the
Atlantic with the Pacific. |
|
CUBAN DICTATOR RAUL CASTRO WARNS CUBANS
OF COMING HARDSHIPS
HAVANA, CUBA --
In
a speech Friday night at the
closing session of the National
Assembly, Cuban dictator Raul Castro
stressed that the country had to
increase its food production and
streamline its construction sector in
order to survive. Alluding to an
infamous speech he once gave saying that
''beans are as important as canons,''
Castro said Friday: "These days, beans
are more important than canons.'' e
warned that the amount of land dedicated
to food cultivation is down 33 percent
in the past nine years. To import the
same amount of food the country consumed
in 2007, cash-strapped Cuba will need to
spend $1 billion more this year.
That means Cuba may have to slow down
efforts to raise salaries, a key issue
for the average worker who makes about
$17 a month. It will depend on the
economic situation of the country,
inevitably linked to crisis in the world
today, which could worsen,'' he said in
a speech streamed live on the Cubavision
TV station website. ``It wouldn't be
ethical to create false expectations. We
would like to go more rapidly, but it's
necessary to act realistically.''
He called for retired teachers to return to the
classroom, saying Cuba was suffering a
shortage of school instructors. He also
stressed Cuba's aging workforce, which
could force the government to raise the
retirement age by year's end. In 17
years, Cuba will have more than 750,000
fewer workers than it currently has, he
said. |
|
us congress assesses hugo chavez's
future
WASHINGTON, D.C. --
A subcommittee of the US House of
Representatives announced on
Thursday a hearing next week to hear
opinions on the future of Venezuela and
the situation of President Hugo Chávez.
The hearing will take place two weeks after the release by
the Colombian armed forces of 15
hostages held by the Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) and
two and a half months after a raid on a
guerrilla camp in Ecuadorian territory
that unleashed a diplomatic crisis
between Colombia, on the one hand, and
Ecuador, Venezuela and Nicaragua, on the
other hand.
It has been called also in the midst of renewed
concerns in the Congress about presumed
Chávez's government links with Iran and
Arabian terrorist groups, such as
Hezbollah. However, the Venezuelan
president has backed out of his public
support to the FARC, AP reported. The
witness for the US government in the
hearing convened for Thursday, July 7th
will be Thomas Shannon, Assistant
Secretary of State for Western
Hemisphere Affairs. Since taking office
almost three years ago, the senior
official has recommended a policy to
approach Chávez by means of dialogue. |
|
HUGO CHAVEZ CERTAIN ABOUT NEW ERA IN
VENEZUELA-COLOMBIA RELATIONS
PARAGUANA, VENEZUELA --
Hugo Chávez said that as from
Friday, upon a meeting held with his
Colombian counterpart Álvaro Uribe in
western Falcón state, bilateral
relations are starting a new era. The
Venezuelan president hailed the talks
with President Uribe as helpful to "turn
completely over a new leaf," following a
political storm.
Chávez welcomed Uribe on Friday near 11:30 a.m. in the
city of Punto Fijo, western Falcón
state; a few minutes later both of them
were visiting Amuay Refinery. Shortly
before his meeting with Uribe, President
Chávez heralded a renewed momentum of
bilateral relations. "Venezuela not only
looks for peace in the hemisphere, but
also seeks integration of our peoples,
and this meeting is meant for
rapprochement, re-launching,
cooperation, peace and Latin American
integration," he said.
"We need to take again the way, reactivate the
relations. Now, this depends on many
things. I am not to say anything in
advance. I have said enough. Later on,
we will offer a press conference," added
Chávez. The two presidents are expected
to tour the Amuay refinery, 370
kilometers to the northeast of Caracas,
before holding a private meeting and
having lunch. The reunion is basically
aimed at burying months of cross
criticism and insults that have
dramatically affected border cooperation
and substantial trade relations. |
|
ANTINARCOTICS AGREEMENT WITH THE US
SHOULD FOLLOW A DEAL WITH COLOMBIA
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
While experts cautiously wait for
President Hugo Chávez's "actions to
speak louder than words" and put into
practice his intention to resume the
antinarcotics cooperation with the
United States -missing since August
2005- they conceded that the news are a
"volte-face" in the president's foreign
policy. They claim that in the event of
signing a memo of understanding with
Washington, it would be just the first
step to "include Venezuela in the global
world and set aside the outlaw state."
On August 7th, 2005, President Chávez terminated "all
of a sudden" the existing agreements
with the Drug Enforcement Administration
(DEA) by arguing that the US agents were
engaged in intelligence actions "that
threatened the country's security and
defense." Since then, bilateral
relations reached stalemate, just when
by mid 2006 a new agreement was almost
ready to renew, under different terms
and conditions, the cooperation with DEA.
In the opinion of Rocío San Miguel, the chair of NGO
Control Ciudadano (Citizen Watch), in
order to renew the agreements with the
United States, there is the need to
resume also "the military and police
cooperation with Colombia that ceased in
1999." "Even, probably, President Chávez
will have to cooperate with Interpol
after having raved about the
international organization," she said.
San Miguel anticipated that the other
allies, particularly Europe, will "cash
in on" the president's announcement.
However, before, they will wait for the
head of state, "hunted by the dilemma of
'for the time being,' to prove his offer
with deeds." |
|
RODRIGO PARDO, FORMER COLOMBIAN MINSTER
OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS: "CHAVEZ IS NOT
NONEXPENDABLE"
BRAZILIA,
BRAZIL --
RODRIGO PARDO, FORMER COLOMBIAN
MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS: "Chávez is
not nonexpendable"
ROBERTO
GIUSTI // EL UNIVERSAL
According to RODRIGO
Pardo,
mediations of neighboring presidents
like Hugo Chávez are losing importance
because Álvaro Uribe has shown that
Chávez is not necessary to handle the
issue and release the hostages
He was
minister of Foreign Affairs and
ambassador to Venezuela; party and
witness to the Colombian recent history.
A journalist like Rodrigo Pardo has an
advantage when analyzing the situation
of Colombia and the region; that is his
cold opinions. He is neither a follower
of Colombian President Álvaro Uribe nor
a fierce opponent. Such equidistance
makes Cambio, the magazine headed by him
in Bogotá, a balanced media outlet in a
country where, after 60 years of
conflict, it seems that peace is getting
closer.
What will be the
political and military impact on the
Colombian internal situation as a result
of the release of Ingrid Betancourt and
the rest of the hostages held by the
Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC)?
Politically, President Álvaro Uribe has
been strengthened a lot. He was going
through a plight, the worst time in his
office, and such a successful result in
such a high-profile issue helps him
leave behind the difficult episode of
the Supreme Court of Justice and
everything involved in it. Even sectors
close to Uribe and the government had
criticized the president for his lack of
respect for institutions and for
jeopardizing the stability of powers.
Today, things have changed and the
situation forces Uribe's critics to
praise the operations that allowed the
rescue of hostages.
CLICK HERE AND READ THE COMPLETE
INTERVIEW |
|
VENEZUELA'S MILITARY EXPENDITURE RANKS
FOURTH IN LATIN AMERICA
BUENOS
AIRES, ARGENTINA --
Venezuela is the fourth country
in the region as far as military
spending is concerned, behind Brazil,
Colombia and Chile. The Bolivarian
Republic of Venezuela's defense expenses
amount to USD 3.3 billion, according to
a report prepared by the Argentinean
private firm Centro de Estudios para la
Nueva Mayoría (Center of Studies for the
New Majority). As stated by the Center,
the Venezuelan government's military
expenditures represented 1 percent of
the country's Gross Domestic Product
(GDP).
Military expenditures in the region
increased by 25 percent last year. This
figure marks a record in recent decades
that was driven by Brazil and Colombia,
said the report of the consulting firm
headed by political scientist Rosendo
Fraga. Military expenditure in Latin
America will reach USD 50 billion in
2008 compared to USD 39.9 billion last
year. Brazil (USD 27.5 billion) expended
55 percent of the total. The population,
territory and GDP of Brazil represent
half of the twelve countries of South
America size, said the report.
Colombia occupies the second place with military
expenditures at USD 6.7 billion,
followed by Chile with USD 5.3 billion.
Colombia had the largest military
spending in terms of GDP (3.34 percent),
while Chile earmarked 2.91 percent of
GDP. Chilean percentage (2.91 percent)
increases to 3.73 percent when revenues
from copper sales are included. |
|
HUGO
CHAVEZ TO VISIT RUSSIA AT THE END OF THIS MONTH
MOSCOW,
RUSSIA --
Hugo Chávez will arrive in Russia
July 22 to "strengthen the strategic
alliance" between both countries and "to
supervise the building of military tanks
that could be purchased by our country,"
said a Venezuelan government statement.
During a Socialist party meeting held
Wednesday night in the Venezuelan city
of Maracay, Chávez also announced that
he would "visit other European countries
between July 22 and 26 to contact some
European leaders." The Venezuelan ruler
did not elaborate, according to the
Presidential Palace official communiqué.
Last June 17, Spanish Foreign Affairs
Minister Miguel Ángel Moratinos invited
President Chávez to visit Spain.
However, the visit has not been
confirmed yet.
Chávez said that Russia offers "loan facilities to
purchase military weapons and hardware
to help modernize the Bolivarian army to
an optimum level of operation." Since
2005, Venezuela has bought 24 Russian
Sukhoi-30 aircrafts and 50 armed
helicopters, for a total of USD 2
billion, according to Russian government
data. |
|
BRAZILIAN PRESIDENT LULA DA SILVA COULD
PLAY A MAJOR ROLE IN THE COLOMBIAN
CONFLICT
BRAZILIA,
BRAZIL --
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da
Silva could be further involved
in the search for peace in Colombia in
the face of the "declining authority" of
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, ex
Colombian hostage Clara Rojas, kidnapped
in 2002 together with Ingrid Betancourt,
told state-run news agency Agencia
Brazil.
"There is the need to look for
alternative communication means" with
the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
(FARC), said the former hostage who was
freed five months ago following
President Chávez's mediation. "Chávez is
worn out, (Ecuadorian President Rafael)
Correa too. Lula remains," she said,
after expressing gratitude for Chávez's
efforts.
According to Rojas, Brazil could take more effective measures
in the conflict, "provided that there is
a closer military and political
approximation -military as a result of
borders and politically in order to be a
facilitator." "The FARC are weakened and
need a breath of fresh air; only enough
not to take absurd decisions that make
anything end in bad terms," said Rojas. |
|
COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE TO STAY
SEVEN HOURS IN CARACAS
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
The visit Colombian President Álvaro
Uribe is paying Friday to
Venezuela to meet with his counterpart
Hugo Chávez will last approximately
seven hours, according to Álvaro Uribe's
agenda, as released Thursday by the
Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in
Bogotá.
Uribe is arriving Friday in Falcón state, northwest
Venezuela, at 11 am. The Colombian
ruler will be taken by land to the
Paraguaná Refinery Complex, where he
will visit the Amuay refinery. Later, he
will meet with President Chávez,
reported Efe. Afterwards, Uribe and his
delegation will attend a luncheon hosted
by the Venezuelan President.
Both leaders will preside over the signing of bilateral
agreements and the reading of a joint
declaration, as well as the signing of
fan agreement between the Venezuelan
Railways Institute (IAFE) and the
Colombian Ministry of Transport. |
|
COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE AND
HUGO CHAVEZ TO RESTORE BILATERAL
COOPERATION
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
Following
the serious impasses that affected
bilateral relations, the
Presidents of Colombia, Álvaro Uribe,
and Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, will try to
turn over a new leaf in the meeting to
be held Friday in the city of Coro,
northwest Venezuela, where both
governments hope to attain a
constructive reconciliation.
The Venezuelan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nicolás
Maduro said during the Second Conference
of States to Prevent, Punish and
Eradicate Violence, held in Caracas, "We
have a strong relationship in multiple
areas that have to be developed in a
respectful, constructive and permanent
framework that is going to be restored
after the meeting."
The minister highlighted that the topics to be
addressed by the two leaders include
energy, trade, infrastructure and border
cooperation programs.
"You are aware of the differences we
have had and of efforts made by
President Chávez during the Dominican
Republic summit and during the Unasur
summit in Brasilia. After these two
meetings, we (Venezuelan and Colombian
authorities) resumed talks," Maduro
said. |
|
VENEZUELAN RETIRED OFFICERS ASK FOR
ANNULMENT OF ARMED FORCES LAW
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA -- A
group of retired officers
judicially assisted by the Venezuelan
Criminal Forum made on Wednesday at the
Constitutional Court of the Supreme
Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) an application
for nullity of 28 articles of the
National Armed Forces Organic Law for
alleged violation of the National
Constitution.
Retired General Enrique Pietro reported that they would
request also a precautionary measure to
suspend the enforcement of a law that
endangers the integrity of the military
and all the community.
Among others, the retired officers asked to make null and
void the organization of a reserve and a
territorial guard. They allege that it
runs counter to articles 328 and 329 of
the Venezuelan Constitution. hey also
rebutted the fact that the reserve
command is a body parallel to the
Ministry of Defense, accountable only to
the President of the Republic. |
|
IRAN REPORTS MISSILE TEST THAT CAN REACH
ISRAEL, DRAWING SHARP U.S. RESPONSE
TEHRAN,
IRAN --
One day after threatening to strike Tel
Aviv and United States interests if
attacked, Iran’s Revolutionary
Guards were reported on Wednesday to
have test-fired nine missiles, including
one which the government in Tehran says
has the range to reach Israel. State-run
media said the missiles were long- and
medium-range weapons, among them a new
version of the Shahab-3, which Tehran
maintains is able to hit targets 1,250
miles away from its firing position.
Parts of western Iran are within 650
miles of Tel Aviv.
The reported tests coincide with increasingly tense
negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear
program, which Iran says is for civilian
purposes but which many Western
governments suspect is aimed at building
nuclear weapons. At the same time,
United States and British warships have
been conducting naval maneuvers in the
Persian Gulf — apparently within range
of the launching site of the missiles
tested on Wednesday. Israel insisted it
did not want war with Iran.
“Israel has no desire for conflict or hostilities with
Iran,” Mark Regev, a spokesman for Prime
Minister Ehud Olmert, said. “But the
Iranian nuclear program and the Iranian
ballistic missile program must be of
grave concern to the entire
international community.” The missile
tests drew a sharp response from the
United States. Gordon D. Johndroe, the
deputy White House press secretary, said
in a statement at the Group of 8 meeting
in Japan that Iran’s development of
ballistic missiles was a violation of
United Nations Security Council
resolutions. |
|
INGRID
BETANCOURT ASKS URIBE TO ACCEPT HELP
FROM ANYBODY, EVEN HUGO CHAVEZ
PARIS,
FRANCE --
Ingrid
Betancourt on Tuesday urged
Colombian authorities to reconsider and
accept help to attain the freedom of the
hostages held by the rebel Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC). "The
point is that hostages in Colombia need
efforts by a lot of people. I think just
one person cannot make it," said the
former hostage referring to Colombian
President Álvaro Uribe, in an interview
with Efe in Paris.
Betancourt, who has said that she is willing to mediate
between Uribe and the Venezuelan
President Hugo Chávez in order to
"restore friendship and confidence"
between both rulers and try to solve the
hostage situation, "dreams" about Chávez
and Uribe "hugging each other again."
"Beyond ideological differences, they
are two presidents who represent two
people who love each other. It is the
same with Ecuador. These differences
must be overcome, and we must be
generous and understand that we alone
are not going to solve this problem, a
friendly hand that help us is always
needed," she stated.
Chávez, "for whatever reason, can speak to FARC and be
heard by them." Betancourt added that
for the guerrilla soldiers, "he is a
god." Additionally, Betancourt said that
the FARC guerrillas felt "practically
betrayed" when Chávez stated that to
obtain power through the use of weapons
was "out of order in Latin America" and
that they should look for a "political
scenario." |
|
VENEZUELAN HIGH COURT REQUESTED TO
DECLARE BANNING UNCONSTITUTIONAL
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA -- Gerardo
Blyde, the leader of opposition
Un Nuevo Tiempo (UNT) party and
pre-candidate to Baruta Mayoralty, said
that the political leadership "will not
commit suicide."
At this time, he said, there is no "plan B" for barred
candidates. "Plan A" remains unchanged,
that is, to override the decision of
Comptroller General Clodosbaldo Russián
to ban a number of public servants from
public office. He said that next
Saturday, July 12th, the Constitutional
Court of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice
(TSJ) will be requested to declare the
Comptroller General's action
unconstitutional.
"Banning is an abuse of authority; we are defending the
disqualified officials, we do not defend
individual interests," said Blyde. |
|
THE IRANIAN REVOLUTIONARY GUARD ISSUED A
WARNING THAT ISRAEL AND US NAVAL FORCES
IN THE PERSIAN GULF WOULD BE TARGETS IF
IRAN'S NUCLEAR FACILITIES ARE
ATTACKED
TEHRAN,
IRAN --
THE ELITE IRANIAN REVOLUTIONARY GUARD
announced a military drill, which it
said involved "missile squads," but did
not say where it was taking place.
Iran's guards and national army hold
regular exercises two or three times a
year.. The exercises came as the U.S.
Navy, in cooperation with the U.K.,
wrapped up a 6-day exercise in the
Persian Gulf called Stake Net. U.S. Navy
officials told FOX News that they
believe the Revolutionary Guards were
conducting their exercises in response
to recent U.S. Naval activity. Navy
officials said they will monitor the
Iranian exercises but at this point had
no details on what the operations looked
like.
The Iranian Web Site quoted guard
official Ali Shirazi as saying that
Israel's coastal metropolis of Tel Aviv
and U.S. warships in the Gulf would be
among the first targets if Iran comes
under attack. "The Zionist regime is
pushing the White House to prepare for a
military strike on Iran," Shirazi was
quoted as saying. "If such a stupidity
is done by them, Tel Aviv and the U.S.
naval fleet in the Persian Gulf will be
the first targets which will be set on
fire in Iran's crushing response."
"The first shot by the U.S. on Iran will set the U.S.
vital interests in the world" at risk,
Shirazi said, according to the Web site.
The U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet,
headquartered in the Persian Gulf nation
of Bahrain, is responsible for
patrolling the Gulf, the Suez Canal and
parts of the Indian Ocean. On Friday,
Iran's top Revolutionary Guards
commander, Gen. Mohammed Ali Jafari,
said Iran would consider any military
action against its nuclear facilities as
the beginning of a war. |
|
CUBAN
SPIES' RANKS ON RISE IN FLORIDA
MIAMI,
FLORIDA --
Cuba's communist government
has rebuilt its network of spies in
Florida to the levels that existed
before the FBI rounded up more than a
dozen members of the Cuban spy Wasp
Network, according to a U.S. Army expert
on Cuban intelligence. Lt. Col. Chris
Simmons, an Army counterintelligence
officer, told The Miami Herald that
within nine to 18 months of the
network's 1998 dismantling, the number
of Cuban agents and intelligence
officers in the state was back up to
pre-Wasp Network levels -- or about 210.
''The loss of any one network doesn't
compromise anything outside its own
structure,'' said Simmons, noting that
Cuba's spies appear to operate within
compartmentalized cells not directly
connected to each other. Simmons'
statement marks the first time a U.S.
official has detailed the number of
Cuban spies in Florida in recent years.
He also outlined the spies' likely
targets, including Cuban exile groups
and U.S. military installations.
Suchlicki, director of the
University of Miami's Institute on Cuban
and Cuban-American Studies, said
Simmons' claim is ''within the realm of
the possible in the nebulous world'' of
intelligence. ''The Cuban government is
interested in anything that deals with
the security of Cuban leaders,''
Suchlicki said. ``They want to know what
exile organizations are doing, and
they're interested in U.S. activities
and getting information and if they can
steal technical data that they can then
pass along to the Chinese, the Iranians
or the Venezuelans.'' |
|
FRENCH
PRESIDENT NICOLAS SARKOZY THANKS HUGO
CHAVEZ FOR ""TIRELESS EFFORTS""
AT HOSTAGES' FREEDOM
PARIS,
FRANCE --
French President Nicolas Sarkozy
sent a letter to his Venezuelan
counterpart Hugo Chávez thanking him for
the "tireless efforts that helped"
release last week several hostages held
by the Colombian guerrillas, including
Ingrid Betancourt.
"As we celebrate the release of Ingrid
Betancourt and other 14 hostages, I
thank you again for your tireless
efforts that helped the hostages of
Colombia to come back to freedom and the
love of their beloved ones," said the
French president, as quoted on Tuesday
in a press release from the Venezuelan
government. Early this year, Chávez
welcome six hostages in Venezuela, who
were unilaterally freed by the Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) as a
token for him, AFP reported.
Since then, the Venezuelan president
was viewed as a key actor to deal with
new releases. The French president has
made it known in this way on several
occasions. The letter, where Sarkozy
congratulates Chávez for the
commemoration of the 197th anniversary
of the Declaration of Independence of
Venezuela, underscored also the "superb"
bilateral relation. |
|
FOREIGN MINISTER FELIPE PEREZ SAID CUBA
IS WILLING TO TALK TO THE UNITED STATES
BUT "AS EQUALS"
HAVANA,
CUBA --Cuba
is willing to engage in talks with the
United States "on the basis of equal
rights," without renouncing its
principles, said Foreign Minister Felipe
Pérez Roque on Friday, while attending
an international conference in
Venezuela. Those principles include
Cuba's right to independence and to
build its future without foreign
interference, he told the Prensa Latina
news agency.
"Cuba remains willing, as we have said on other occasions, to
talk seriously with the authorities of
the United States, if they so decide, on
the basis of equal rights, not as a
subordinate or dependent country that
goes on its knees to beg forgiveness,"
he said. If the new U.S. president
"offers to dialogue and discuss a
bilateral relationship, we shall do so,
but maintaining respect for the
standards and principles that Cuba will
never renounce."
The Americans "are the ones who must decide what course to
take with Cuba. We shall remain firm, in
the middle of the Caribbean, and nobody
will remove us from there." |
|
CHIEF
OF THE U.S. INTERESTS SECTION IN HAVANA
OFFERS INTERNET ACCESS TO CUBA
HAVANA,
CUBA --
The chief of the U.S. Interests Section
in Havana, Michael Parmly, said
Washington "would not be opposed" to
granting Cuba cable access to the
Internet if the Castro government allows
all Cubans to utilize it, the Spanish
news agency EFE reported Saturday.
"U.S. technology companies are ready at this moment -- now --
to connect Cuba to the Internet and our
government would not be opposed," Parmly
was reported as telling guests at a
Fourth of July party. "The only thing
missing is for the Cuban government to
lift its restrictions, lose its fears
and begin to trust its own people."
The U.S. trade embargo bars Cuba from tapping the
underwater Internet cable that runs from
Miami to Cancún, Mexico, only 20 miles
from Havana, so Cuba must use satellite
connections, which are more expensive
than cable and technologically more
restricting. For that reason, Cuba
limits its citizens' private use of the
Internet, favoring its "social use" by
state-run institutions. Parmly's comment
may have been in response to criticism
of Washington's Internet policy voiced
frequently during the Journalists' Union
congress last week in Havana. |
|
VENEZUELAN CATHOLIC CHURCH IS NOT SPLIT,
SAYS PRESIDENT OF BISHOPS' CONFERENCE
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
The Venezuelan Catholic Church "is
not divided," said Monsignor Ubaldo
Santana, the president of the Venezuelan
Bishops' Conference (CEV), in reference
to the organization of the new
pro-government Reformed Catholic Church.
"In the face of the emergence of a new religious group named
Reformed Catholic Church, we reassert
that the Catholic Church in Venezuela,
to which most of the Venezuelan people
belong, has not split," he commented.
"We reassert our full, total communion
with the church presided over by
Benedict XVI and express our joy and
obedient adhesion," said Ubaldo Santana.
He said that, while they would not take legal action against
the new religious group, at least would
ask for clarification of some items on
its raison d'être and purposes. "We will
find out if effectively this
denomination was registered with the
title held and according to it, we will
see what other measures we can take. We
will see, but most probably will not
take legal measures; what we will ask
though, is for clarification of some
items," he said. |
|
INGRID BETANCOURT MAKES RADIO BROADCAST
TO
FARC
HOSTAGES
PARIS,
FRANCE --
Ingrid Betancourt spoke on Sunday
through a radio broadcast to those still
being held in the Colombian jungle by
leftist guerrillas, urging them not to
lose hope. "I have spoken to French
President Nicolas Sarkozy several times
and he committed himself publicly to
continue the fight for all the hostages
who are still in the jungle," Betancourt
told remaining captives of the FARC
during her broadcast, of which snippets
were aired on French media.
She spoke from Paris on Radio Caracol, a
Colombian radio station routinely used
to communicate with FARC hostages, on
which she had listened to messages from
relatives and supporters during her long
captivity. A source close to Betancourt
said she had urged the jungle captives
not to lose hope and that they too would
soon taste freedom.
Betancourt has been in back-to-back media interviews,
medical tests and official functions
since she arrived in France. She told
the newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche she
would return to Colombia in a few days,
giving no further details. French radio
station Radio France Internationale said
in a statement Betancourt would send
another message to the hostages on
Monday to offer further support. |
|
IRAN DEFIANT ON RIGHT TO NUCLEAR POWER
TEHRAN,
IRAN --
Iran's government spokesman on
Saturday reiterated its right to develop
nuclear power for peaceful purposes, a
state-run news agency reported. Iranian
Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki has
suggested that Iran would never launch
an unprovoked attack on Israel.
Gholam-Hossein Elham made the remark to
reporters a day after Iran delivered a
response to a world powers proposal that
Iran suspend its uranium enrichment in
exchange for economic and other
incentives, the state-run Islamic
Republic News Agency reported. World
leaders, such as those from the West,
the U.N. Security Council and Israel,
have been suspicious that Iran is using
its nuclear program to develop weaponry.
Iran has consistently disputed that and
said it plans to use nuclear power for
energy.
Elham said "Iran's stand on the issue has not changed"
and that Iran "will not withdraw from
legitimate rights of its people," IRNA
reported.
"Tehran's stand is based on the
legitimate rights of the Iranian nation
as well as the international
regulations. The Iranian nation will
continue with the path determined by the
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyed Ali
Khamenei," Elham said. |
|
TESTIMONY PLACES CHAVEZ IN SCANDAL OF A
BRIEFCASE WITH $800,000
MIAMI,
FLORIDA -- Hugo
Chávez was personally involved in
efforts to conceal his nation's
participation in the scandal surrounding
a briefcase that contained $800,000,
according to testimony obtained by the
FBI and presented last week in Miami
federal court. The money, confiscated by
Argentine customs officials, was
allegedly to be a campaign contribution
to that nation's current president
Cristina Fernández de Kirchner.
According to the court documents
submitted on June 27, Venezuelan
businessman Franklin Durán declared that
his former associate Carlos Kauffman
pointed the finger at Chávez during his
deposition to the FBI, citing several
sources. Both Durán and Kauffman have
been implicated in the case and are
accused of acting as unregistered agents
of the Venezuelan government.
In his testimony, Kauffman told the FBI that lawyer
Moisés Maionica assured him that,
``President Chávez was involved in the
matter and that he had placed DISIP
[Venezuela's intelligence service]
director [Henry] Rangel Silva in charge;
and that Rangel told him that President
Chávez was personally involved in the
case.'' This is the first time that the
Venezuelan president has been directly
implicated with the briefcase scandal.
Until now, the evidence presented in
court only implicated the director of
the DISIP and the office of Vice
President Jorge Rodríguez. According to
Durán's lawyer, Edward Shohat,
Kauffman's testimony implicating Chávez
will be used to prove that Durán was
acting as an unregistered agent of the
Venezuelan government in the United
States. |
|
IRAN WARNS AGAIN OF CLOSING THE HORMUZ
STRAIT
TEHRAN,
IRAN --
Chief of Staff of Iran's Armed Forces
says the Islamic Republic will close the
Strait of Hormuz if its interests are
placed in jeopardy. "The Strait of
Hormuz is a strategic waterway and it is
therefore very important for us to keep
it open," Major General Hassan
Firouzabadi said on Sunday. "It should
be made clear that we will not allow
anyone to pass through the waterway, if
Iran's regional interests are
jeopardized," he added.
Firouzabadi's remarks come after a
recent New York Times report revealed
that in the first week of June, the
Israeli air force staged a maneuver off
the southern Mediterranean Island of
Crete in preparation for a war with the
Islamic Republic According to the
report, Israeli aircraft flew over 900
miles, roughly the distance from their
airfields to a nuclear enrichment
facility in the central Iranian city of
Natanz.
Speaking one day after the 20th anniversary of the
downing of an Iranian passenger plane by
the US Navy in the Strait of Hormuz,
Maj. Gen. Firouzabadi criticized
Washington for bowing to Tel Aviv's
every demand. "The US military belongs
to the government of the United States.
Greedy warmongers like Bush and the
Zionists must not be able to take
advantage of this institution," said
Firouzabadi. The top Iranian commander
said the US government is 'trapped in
the jaws of global Zionism', concluding
that the American nation and military
forces should not be sacrificed for
unworthy rulers serving the interests of
Zionism. |
|
COLOMBIA GOVERNMENT RELEASES FOOTAGE OF
DARING HOSTAGE RESCUE OPERATION
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
THE COLOMBIA GOVERNMENT showed video
Friday of an orderly mission that ended
in hugs and laughter for 15 hostages who
were rescued from a Colombian guerilla
group this week. Former presidential
candidate Ingrid Betancourt is shown on
the video of the rescue. The 3½-minute
video was shot by Colombian soldiers
posing as a media crew during
Wednesday's operation. It was shown at
Colombia's military headquarters Friday.
It begins with the hostages being led across a field, heads
bowed and their wrists in the plastic
banding commonly used as handcuffs. One
of the Colombian hostages approached the
camera. "I have been imprisoned for 10
years," he said. "I am Lt. Malagon with
the Colombian army. I have been here in
captivity." Watch video of the rescue
operation »
The camera quickly moves on, capturing the image of one of
the Americans who displays his
handcuffed wrists to the camera, then
shifts focus to Betancourt. She appears
indignant at being forced to be
handcuffed. "My heart broke because I
did not want another transfer, another
time, in captivity," Betancourt said
soon after her rescue. The tape then
shows the hostages getting into the
helicopter with two of their FARC
captors, alias "Gafas" and "Cesar," who
was carrying a revolver, Defense
Minister Juan Manuel Santos said. |
|
VENEZUELAN OIL SALES TO THE UNITED
STATES DOWN 11.7 PERCENT
WASHINGTON,
D.C. -- VENEZUELAN
oil sales to the United States in
January-April tumbled 11.7 percent, or
150,000 bpd, compared to the same period
in 2007, according to the Energy
Information Administration (EIA), the
statistical arm of the US Energy
Department.
The EIA said Venezuela's crude oil and byproducts sales
to the US amounted to 1.31 million bpd
in the first four months in 2007. In the
same period this year, shipments totaled
1.16 million bpd.
Based on the figures, most of the decline is
attributable to the reduced sales of oil
byproducts. In January-April 2007, sales
of Venezuelan oil byproducts to the
United States added up to 241,000 bpd,
but in the same period this year
shipments plummeted to an average of
171,000 bpd. The figures show a decline
of 29 percent, or 70,000 bpd. This is a
significant fall compared to a 7.5
percent drop in crude oil sales, which
went down from 1.07 million bpd to
990,000 bpd in the same period. |
|
INGRID BETANCOURT GETS HERO'S WELCOME IN
FRANCE
PARIS,
FRANCE --
Freed from captivity and humiliation in
the jungles of Colombia, Ingrid
Betancourt returns to her beloved
France and a hero's welcome Friday in
the gilded halls of the presidential
palace. President Nicolas Sarkozy plans
to personally greet Betancourt at the
air base in Villacoublay, outside Paris.
Then Betancourt, her family and
supporters who lobbied for her release
will head together to the Elysee palace,
Sarkozy's office said. Betancourt, a
dual French-Colombian citizen, was freed
Wednesday in a daring Colombian
operation involving military spies who
tricked FARC rebels into handing over
Betancourt and 14 other hostages without
firing a shot.
From the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI sent
word Friday that he would be happy to
meet with Betancourt as soon as his
schedule permits. Earlier, he had sent a
telegram expressing his delight that she
was freed. He had met with Betancourt's
mother at the Vatican in February.
Betancourt was campaigning for
Colombia's presidency when she was
captured in 2002. She became a cause
celebre in France during her six years
as a hostage, with her portrait hung on
town halls and constant street rallies
by supporters.
Betancourt spent much of her childhood here and
attended university at Paris' Institut
d'Etudes Politiques. Her own children -
Melanie, 22, and Lorenzo, 19 - have
grown up in Paris during her captivity.
Betancourt was reunited with her
children in Colombia on Thursday.
Interviewed by Europe-1 radio before her
arrival in France, said she was proud of
how her children had forged
"extraordinary characters" in her
absence. She recalled humiliating
treatment by the FARC, saying she had to
wear chains 24 hours a day for three
years. "When you have a chain around
your neck, you have to keep your head
down and try to accept your fate without
succumbing entirely to humiliation,
without forgetting who you are," she
said. |
|
THE
THREE AMERICAN HOSTAGES ARE IN GOOD
SHAPE
LACKLAND
AFB, TEXAS -- Three
U.S. hostages rescued from
Colombian rebels after more than five
years in captivity are in good condition
and learning how to live a normal life
again, military officials said Thursday.
The three U.S. military contractors -
Marc Gonsalves, Thomas Howes and Keith
Stansell - had been held by the
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
since their drug-surveillance plane went
down in the jungle in February 2003.
They were among 15 hostages, including
former Colombian presidential candidate
Ingrid Betancourt and 11 members of the
Colombian security services, rescued by
Colombian forces in a daring mission
Wednesday. "I will tell you that they
greeted me with a strong handshake and
clear eyes and an incredible smile,"
said Maj. Gen. Keith Huber, commanding
general of U.S. Army South, which is
responsible for Army operations in Latin
America and the Caribbean. The men,
employees of a Northrop Grumman Corp.
subsidiary, arrived in the U.S. late
Wednesday. They were then taken to
Brooke Army Medical Center at San
Antonio's Fort Sam Houston to undergo
tests.
Eric Atkisson, a spokesman for U.S. Army South, said
the former hostages would not speak
publicly Thursday. The men's families
were arriving in San Antonio throughout
the day, said Katie Lamb, a Northrop
Grumman spokeswoman. Stansell had
already seen his son Kyle and daughter
Lauren, as well as his father and
stepmother, Huber said. "So on the tail
end of their first private reunion in
five years and five months, I can tell
you that it made us all very proud that
there were children there who were
thrilled to see their parent and there
were parents there who were overwhelmed
with seeing their son back safe," Huber
said. |
|
THE U.S. MILITARY DID NOT STOP A MINUTE
IN ITS SEARCH FOR THE THREE AMERICAN
HOSTAGES
WASHINGTON,
D.C. -- The
U.S. military says it flew
thousands of spy flights over Colombian
jungles trying to find and free three
Pentagon contractors since their
kidnapping in 2003. In the end, it was a
daring operation by Colombian military
intelligence agents that finally rescued
the American trio from leftist rebels.
Until this week's rescue, some U.S.
government officials despaired that Tom
Howes, Marc Gonsalves and Keith Stansell
might ever be freed. Some counterterror,
military and diplomatic officials
familiar with Bush administration
efforts to secure their release
questioned whether enough was being
done.
On Thursday, Col. William Costello,
spokesman for the U.S. Southern Command,
said the command made 3,600
intelligence, surveillance and
reconnaissance flights, followed up on
175 intelligence leads and spent $250
million trying. "We've been actively
searching for these guys every day for
the past five and half years," Costello
said. FBI spokesman Richard Kolko said
the agency sent crisis negotiators and
investigators on "countless trips to
Bogota" since the kidnapping.
One official said a Defense Intelligence Agency cell
that primarily works to track captured
or missing U.S. troops has been working
on the case of the civilian contractors,
who had been held by the Revolutionary
Armed Forces of Colombia since their
drug-surveillance plane went down in the
jungle in February 2003. Another said it
was U.S. intelligence that located the
hostages. A third said the U.S. Special
Operations Command helped with
surveillance that positively located the
hostages within the past year using
satellites, aircraft and ground
reconnaissance - and had tracked them
since then. All "This was a
Colombian-planned and Colombian-executed
operation," State Department spokesman
Sean McCormack told reporters. "We were
in a supporting role." |
|
INGRID BETANCOURT URGES HUGO CHÁVEZ,
RAFAEL CORREA TO RESPECT COLOMBIA'S
DEMOCRACY AND RESTORE TIES WITH
PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
Ingrid Betancourt, following her
rescue from the rebel Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) on
Wednesday, Thursday urged Venezuelan
President Hugo Chávez and his Ecuadorian
counterpart Rafael Correa to facilitate
the reestablishment of friendship,
fraternity and confidence with Colombian
President Álvaro Uribe. Her remarks came
a few minutes after the former Colombian
presidential candidate, who was held by
the FARC for almost seven years,
reunited with her two children, Mélanie
and Lorenzo Delloye.
"First of all, I am asking presidents Chávez and Correa
to help us to restore the relations of
friendship, fraternity and confidence
with President Uribe. This would be an
important step to achieve new unilateral
releases" of FARC-held hostages,
Betancourt said. "I'm grateful to my
Army; I'm grateful to Colombia, my
fatherland, and to this faultless
operation. Such a perfect operation is
unprecedented," said Ingrid Betancourt,
the Franco-Colombian politician that was
rescued, together with other 14
hostages, from the rebel Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC).
Ingrid and 12 of the rescued hostages were received
Wednesday by a tearful crowd in Bogota.
Betancourt was the first person walking
down the stairs of the plane and hugged
her mother, Yolanda Pulecio, and her
husband, Juan Carlos Lecompte. The
former Colombian presidential candidate
said: "I want to thank God, and to thank
all of you who accompanied me in your
prayers, who thought of me and kept me
in your hearts, who felt compassion for
us hostages." She thanked the media for
their permanent coverage of her case and
to the other former hostages of the FARC.
"I owe the media a lot, if you had not
been there, I probably would not be
alive", Betancourt said. |
|
BETANCOURT RECALLS THE RESCUE OPERATION
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
Ingrid Betancourt recalled that
she woke up Wednesday at 5:00 am,
together with the other captives. They
carried their baggage, crossed a river
and later waited several hours until a
white helicopter, without any other
signs, landed in the forest.
"They made us board the helicopter in handcuffs. It was
very humiliating", Betancourt said. She
specially thanked William Pérez. "He was
my medical caretaker when I was ill."
Betancourt also had some grateful words
for Juan Manuel Santos, Colombian
Minister of Defense, "for his boldness"
and congratulated President Álvaro Uribe,"
who took a great risk for us."
"They closed the doors of the helicopter and suddenly
something happened. I saw the "comandante"
who so many times acted like a despot
lying of the floor, naked. I was not
happy. I felt pity. I thanked God
because I was thankful to be with people
that would respect the life even of
their enemies. The chief of the
operation said: 'We are from the
(Colombian) National Army. You are
free!' We cried, jumped, couldn't
believe it. The helicopter almost went
down," Betancourt explained. "The people
that stayed at the camp, our guards, we
left them alive. I hope that they still
be alive and that they will not be
executed for what happened. The
operation was perfect," she added.
|
|
BETANCOURT THANKS COLOMBIAN ARMY FOR A
"PERFECT OPERATION"
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
"I'm grateful to my Army; I'm grateful
to Colombia, my fatherland, and to this
faultless operation. Such a
perfect operation is unprecedented,"
said Ingrid Betancourt, the
Franco-Colombian politician that was
rescued, together with other 14
hostages, from the rebel Colombian
Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC).
Ingrid and 12 of the rescued hostages
were received Wednesday by a tearful
crowd in Bogota.
The former Colombian presidential candidate said: "I
want to thank God, and to thank all of
you who accompanied me in your prayers,
who thought of me and kept me in your
hearts, who felt compassion for us
hostages." She thanked the media for
their permanent coverage of her case and
to the other former hostages of the FARC.
"I owe the media a lot, if you had not
been there, I probably would not be
alive", Betancourt said.
"Happiness should not make us forget that others died,"
Betancourt said. The former presidential
candidate hailed the security policy
applied by President Uribe. She remarked
that his re-election was very good for
Colombia. "However, I do not mean that
you approve all his decisions." Uribe
"has been a very good president. He did
a job that was necessary in Colombia,"
Betancourt added. "I want to be in this
moment another Colombian soldier
fighting for peace. This is my greatest
happiness," said Betancourt. The former
candidate stressed that the Colombian
Army has seriously hit the guerrillas.
She said that her treasures, back in the
forest, were a piece of soap, a
toothbrush, and some underwear. |
|
THE COLOMBIAN ARMY RESCUED INGRID
BETANCOURT AND THREE AMERICANS KIDNAPPED
BY THE FARC
BOGOTA,
COLOMBIA --
French-Colombian politician Ingrid
Betancourt and three Americans
were rescued from leftist guerrillas by
Colombian troops, Defense Minister Juan
Manuel Santos said Wednesday. Santos
said all of the former hostages were in
reasonably good health after being held
for years in secret jungle camps. The
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia,
known as the FARC, has been holding
about 40 high-profile hostages it has
sought to exchange for jailed rebels.
Betancourt, a former presidential candidate with dual
nationality, was kidnapped by the FARC
in 2002. She was last seen in a rebel
video at the end of last year looking
gaunt and despondent. The Americans,
three Defense Department contract
workers, were captured in 2003 after
their light aircraft crashed in the
jungles while on a counter-narcotics
operation. The FARC, waging Latin
America's oldest insurgency, demanded
that Colombian President Alvaro Uribe
pull back troops from an area the size
of New York City to facilitate talks.
Uribe, popular at home for his tough stance against the
rebels, refuses to accept that
condition. But he has offered a smaller
safe haven under international
observation in an area where there are
no armed forces or armed groups. The
FARC, once a 17,000-member force able to
attack cities and kidnap almost at will,
has been driven back into remote areas
and now has about 9,000 combatants. The
guerrillas have lost three major leaders
this year. Listed as a terrorist group
by U.S. and European officials, the FARC
has used Colombia's cocaine trade to
fund its operations. |
|
CUBA
SAYS US ORGANIZING DEMONSTRATIONS
HAVANA,
CUBA --
Cuba
accused U.S. diplomats of
instigating opponents of the
communist-run government to hold public
protests to mark American Independence
Day. "There has been an escalation of
provocative actions organized and
financed by the U.S. Interests Section
in Havana," the Foreign Ministry said in
a communique published in the Communist
Party newspaper Granma.
It said the mission "is trying to organize other illegal
activities and is instigating the
mercenaries in Cuba to realize
provocative public actions around July
4, U.S. Independence Day." It did not
describe what sort of demonstrations
might be planned. In Washington, U.S.
State Department spokesman Sean
McCormack told reporters Wednesday that
"Cuba is one of the few places on earth
where simply having a meeting is seen as
a threat to the government."
Communist officials last month accused Michael Parmly,
America's top diplomat in Havana, of
carrying funds to dissidents from a
Cuban-American businessman who was once
convicted in the U.S. of conspiring to
collect military-style weapons to
overthrow Cuba's government. Cuba said
the American mission has violated
international conventions on diplomatic
behavior as well as the agreement
between Cuba and the United States to
operate "interest sections" in each
other's capitals despite having no
formal diplomatic relations. |
|
CUBAN
FLIGHTS FROM MIAMI TO HAVANA CONTINUE AS
JUDGE MULLS STATE FEES
MIAMI,
FLORIDA--
A federal judge ruled on Tuesday
to allow flights to Cuba to continue
while he considers travel agents'
arguments over whether they should be
regulated by the state of Florida for
selling direct flights to Cuba. The two
sides will return to court on July 11
for another hearing to determine the
validity of the law, which was set to
kick in Tuesday. The group of 16
Miami-Dade travel agencies specializing
in trips to Cuba are suing the state in
federal court to stop increased fees
from taking effect on Tuesday. Those
fees are on hold until the judge's
decision.
The new law requires agencies to pay annual fees of up to
$2,500 and increases by tenfold -- to
$250,000 -- the bond money required for
agencies to operate in Florida. It
applies only to agencies selling trips
to countries on the U.S. State
Department's list of terrorist nations.
Cuba is among five nations on the list.
The law was sponsored by Miami
Republican state Rep. David Rivera in
May and signed into law last week by
Gov. Charlie Crist. Rivera, the son of
Cuban exiles, defends the measure as a
homeland security issue and necessary
for the ''consumer protection'' of his
constituents.
''This is just anther frivolous lawsuit by the Castro
government business partners here in the
U.S., who only want to protect their
pocketbooks and continue getting rich
with the Castro regime,'' Rivera said.
The lawsuit, filed on Monday against
Florida Department of Agriculture and
Consumer Services Commissioner Charles
Bronson, contends that the state's
measure violates the U.S. Constitution
on six grounds, including denying the
travel agencies equal protection by
``singling out Cuban-American business
owners.'' |
|
the united states reactivates today the
navy fourth fleet
MIAMI,
FLORIDA --
Almost six decades after it was
discontinued, the US Navy Fourth
Fleet as of Tuesday is again sailing the
Latin American seas, as it did during
World War II.
In an interview via e-mail with AP, lieutenant commander Pat
Paterson, who is the liaison between the
US, Andean and Southern Cone navies,
said the restoration of the Fourth Fleet
is to bring up the region's navy
resources and staff up to the level of
other existing fleets, such as the Fifth
Fleet, based on the Persian Gulf, and
the Sixth Fleet, based on the
Mediterranean Sea.
While he rejected the suggestion that the move is
intended to counteract Venezuelan
President Hugo Chávez, Paterson did
concede that "there is concern that
President Hugo Chávez may revert the
great progress his country has made
toward democratic principles and
institutions [...] and may threaten his
peaceful neighbors or destabilize the
region." The US Navy has some 10-15
ships in Latin America on a daily basis,
with some 5,000-7,000 troops, and it has
no plans to add new ships or staff.
|
|
HUGO
CHAVEZ SAID THAT REACTIVATION OF THE US
NAVY 4TH FLEET IS A THREAT
CARACAS,
VENEZUELA --
Hugo Chávez stated that the
reactivation of the US Navy Fourth Fleet
to patrol Latin American seas is a
threat.
The ruler claimed he was certain the move was a threat, and
underscored that one of the reasons
behind this action was Venezuela's huge
oil reserve. "I do not have any doubt
about it. It is a threat. There is no
need to make any questions. I am sure
you feel it that way too," he told
reporters.
Chávez urged the member countries of the Common Market
of the South (Mercosur) to ask the US
administration for an explanation on the
deployment of the fleet. During his
intervention in the presidential summit
of Mercosur, in Tucumán, Argentina,
Chávez lashed out at the move. "I do
believe we should ask the United States
what is this, what do they intend to do
with this, what are they looking for in
our waters, in our environment, in the
Atlantic Ocean, in the Pacific Ocean."
|
|
VENEZUELA DENIES ROLE IN ATTACK IN
BOLIVIA
LA
PAZ, BOLIVIA--
The Venezuelan Embassy to Bolivia
Tuesday "forcefully" rejected the
Bolivian opposition's claims that it was
involved in a bomb attack against an
anti-Evo Morales television channel last
June 21. In a communiqué published by
the Bolivian press, the Venezuelan
Embassy, headed by Ambassador Julio
Montes, branded the accusation as
"malicious" and "groundless."
"These claims come as part of a systematic international
smear campaign encouraged by the US
administration against our revolution
and the people of the Americas that have
chosen the way of unity and
sovereignty," the statement reads.
Former Bolivian President Jorge Quiroga,
the leader of opposition Podemos party,
which holds a majority in the Bolivian
Senate, claimed the Venezuelan Embassy
to Bolivia rented the car from which
explosives were thrown at Unitel
television channel and provided the
logistics and the explosives used in the
attack.
The attack took place early last June 21 in the border
town of Yacuiba, south Bolivia, ahead of
a vote on the autonomy of Tarija region.
The Venezuelan Embassy Tuesday stressed
it only supports the implementation of
the agreements entered into under the
Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas
(ALBA) and the Peoples' Free Trade
Agreement (TCP). Venezuela's financial
aid to Bolivia, as Morales himself
disclosed recently, exceeds USD 100
million in several programs. |
|
DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER SHAUL MOFAZ SAID
ISRAEL WILL ATTACK IRAN
JERUSALEN,
ISRAEL --
"If Iran continues its program to
develop nuclear weapons, we will
attack it," Deputy Prime Minister Shaul
Mofaz told Yediot Ahronot, Israel's
largest mass-circulation daily. "The
window of opportunity has closed. The
sanctions are not effective. There will
be no alternative but to attack Iran in
order to stop the Iranian nuclear
program." Mofaz's threat is one of the
most explicit made against the Islamic
Republic of Iran by a member of Prime
Minister Ehud Olmert's Cabinet.
The threat is not without precedent. In
1981, Israeli warplanes destroyed an
Iraqi nuclear reactor being built by
Saddam Hussein's regime. Israel also is
reported to have targeted a Syrian
reactor in September. It also has
significant political resonance in
Israel amid talk that Mofaz has begun
jockeying to replace Olmert, who is
embroiled in a corruption probe, as the
ruling Kadima Party's leader and prime
minister.
Mofaz was reiterating a prevailing view among Kadima
officials and other Israeli politicians
that international sanctions targeting
Iran and its nuclear program aren't
working. The West believes Iran's aim is
to build nuclear weapons, while Iran
says it is developing nuclear energy for
peaceful purposes. Asked how he responds
to the harsh statements of Iranian
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Rome
that Israel should be wiped off the map,
Mofaz said: "He will disappear before
Israel does." |
|
REPORT:
U.S. 'PREPARING THE BATTLEFIELD' IN IRAN
WASHINGTON,
D.C. --
The
Bush administration has launched
a "significant escalation" of covert
operations in Iran, sending U.S.
commandos to spy on the country's
nuclear facilities and undermine the
Islamic republic's government,
journalist Seymour Hersh said Sunday.
White House, CIA and State Department
officials declined comment on Hersh's
report, which appears in this week's
issue of The New Yorker.
Hersh told CNN's "Late Edition with Wolf
Blitzer" that Congress has authorized up
to $400 million to fund the secret
campaign, which involves U.S. special
operations troops and Iranian
dissidents. President Bush and Vice
President Dick Cheney have rejected
findings from U.S. intelligence agencies
that Iran has halted a clandestine
effort to build a nuclear bomb and "do
not want to leave Iran in place with a
nuclear program," Hersh said.
"They believe that their mission is to make sure that
before they get out of office next year,
either Iran is attacked or it stops its
weapons program," Hersh said. The new
article, "Preparing the Battlefield," is
the latest in a series of articles
accusing the Bush administration of
preparing for war with Iran. He based
the report on accounts from current and
former military, intelligence, and
congressional sources
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IRAN'S AHMADINEJAD SAYS ISRAEL WILL
"DISAPPEAR"
TEHRAN,
IRAN--
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was
speaking at a gathering of foreign
guests marking this week's 19th
anniversary of the death of Iran's late
revolutionary leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah
Khomeini, in 1989, the official IRNA
news agency said. "You should know that
the criminal and terrorist Zionist
regime which has 60 years of plundering,
aggression and crimes in its file has
reached the end of its work and will
soon disappear off the geographical
scene," he said.
Turning to the United States, he said
the era of decline and destruction of
its "satanic power" had begun and added:
"The bell on the countdown of the
destruction of the empire of power and
wealth has begun to ring." A 2005
statement by Ahmadinejad saying that
Israel should be "wiped off the map"
outraged the international community.
In April, a senior Iranian army commander said Iran
will respond to any military attack from
Israel by "eliminating" it, in comments
condemned by Washington. The United
States, which severed ties with Iran
shortly after its 1979 Islamic
revolution, is leading efforts to
isolate Tehran over its disputed nuclear
program. Some analysts have speculated
that Israel might attack Iran to stop
its nuclear activities, which the West
fears are a front for weapons
development. Iran, which does not
recognize Israel, insists it wants
nuclear technology only for electricity.
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