Latest  News of  NOVEMBER 2005

HUGO CHAVEZ GOVERNMENT DENIED ENTRY OF SIX U.S. CONGRESSMEN TO VENEZUELA

  CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- A congressional delegation led by Rep. Henry Hyde arrived on Monday in Venezuela, but was not permitted to leave the plane at the country's main airport and left abruptly, a spokesman for the U.S. embassy said. The delegation on the plane had been slated to meet with Venezuelan Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel and other government officials, and waited for roughly one hour before departing, Brian Penn, the embassy spokesman, told local Globovision television.  

    "Government officials did not allow them off the plane, and that's the cause of the canceled visit," Penn said without elaborating.   The group of six U.S. lawmakers led by Hyde, an Illinois Republican who chairs the House International Relations Committee, was harassed by customs officials for two hours before refused entry to Venezuela, according to Hyde's office.  "The delegation members expressed their profound disappointment in the Venezuelan government's capricious and unexplained decision," the office said in a statement.  

    Jose Cabello, president of the airport, denied that Venezuelan authorities turned back the delegation of U.S. legislators.  He said U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield arrived at the airport's special zone for noncommercial aircraft, entered the plane while it sat on the tarmac, and presumably spoke briefly with the pilot and passengers before leaving the airport in an embassy vehicle.  

ARGENTINA'S ECONOMY MINISTER ROBERTO LAVAGNA LEAVES CABINET, REPORTEDLY SACKED BY PRESIDENT

  BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA.- Roberto Lavagna, the independent economist who played a key role in the recovery of Argentina from an unprecedented recession three years ago, has left his post, the government reported Monday. Lavagna's exit was part of a partial shuffle of the Cabinet ordered by president Nestor Kirchner, his office said. Kirchner appointed Felisa Micelli, until now president of the state-owned Banco de la Nacion Argentina, as Lavagna's successor.

    Lavagna had been Economy Minister since 2002, one year before Kirchner's election. He had been appointed by caretaker President Eduardo Duhalde, who ruled after President Fernando de la Rua was forced to resign in the wake of street protests over the economic crisis. Confirmation of Lavagna's departure came after he met for about 15 minutes with Kirchner Monday morning, and amid reports that the president had asked for his resignation. Reports of differences between the president and the minister had been circulating for about a week.

A CUBAN FAMILY OF TEN, INCLUDING A 7-YEAR OLD GIRL,  SAVED BY ZENITH CRUISE SHIP

  MIAMI, FLORIDA.- More than a thousand Thanksgiving holiday revelers cruising within view of Cuba had to make an unexpected stop over the weekend to rescue 10 migrants from a 15-foot boat foundering in the Florida Straits, passengers said Monday. Among the migrants the crew of the Zenith plucked from the sea Sunday was a young girl named Jennifer. The 7-year-old won the hearts of passengers during her 10 hours on board the ship, owned by the Miami-based Celebrity Cruises.

    But for the girl and her family, the upgrade from a boat powered largely by homemade oars to the luxury liner was brief. The seven men and two women in the group were taken off the cruise ship at about 11 p.m. by a U.S. Coast Guard cutter, where they remained Monday, Petty Officer Dana Warr said. Their names have not been released, and their relatives have not come forward. The group was being questioned by immigration authorities who will determine whether they will be repatriated or eventually allowed to resettle in a third country.

SPAIN TO SELL MILITARY PLANES, BOATS TO VENEZUELA; UNITED STATES CONCERNED BY DEAL

  CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Spain agreed Monday to sell 12 military planes and eight patrol boats to Venezuela in a $2 billion deal that the United States has threatened to block. The U.S. ambassador to Spain, Eduardo Aguirre, said last week that Washington had concerns about the sale because the planes and boats carry U.S. parts and technology, adding that "in the long run we hope the sale won't go ahead."

    Spain is selling 10 C-295 transport planes and two CN-235 patrol planes, as well as four ocean patrol boats and four coast patrol vessels. It is Spain's largest-ever defense deal. Spanish Defense Minister Jose Bono said at the signing ceremony there was no reason for the United States to object to the agreement. He said neither the boats nor transport planes were armed, and the patrol planes were only equipped for self-defense. "This is not a warplane," he said.

    Hugo Chavez criticized Washington for trying to hold up the sale. "Venezuela was a colony of the U.S. empire for a long time. Today we're free, and the world should know it." "We in Venezuela don't have to be giving any explanation, much less under imperialist pressure." Venezuelan Navy Vice Adm. Armando Laguna said the boats and planes would be delivered within seven years, and any U.S.-made parts could be replaced easily with others made in Europe. "We'll change the equipment if their export isn't approved or if they don't grant the export license," Laguna said, adding that the U.S. components "aren't vital, really."

HUGO CHAVEZ APPLAUDS SPAIN FOR SALE OF MILITARY PLANES, BOATS IN FACE OF UNITED STATES OPPOSITION

  CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez applauded Spain on Sunday for moving forward on a major defense deal to sell military planes and boats to the South American country despite U.S. opposition. Chavez and Spanish Defense Minister Jose Bono are set to sign a US$2 billion (1.7 billion) contract Monday for eight patrol boats and 12 transport planes, making it Spain's largest-ever defense deal. The United States last week threatened to block the sale because it involves U.S. military technology.

    Chavez, speaking on his weekly TV and radio program "Hello, President," commended Spanish authorities for their firm response to "the attempts to crush (the deal) and the lack of respect of the imperialist government of the United States." Chavez has said that the vessels and planes will be used to combat the drug trade in Venezuela. The country borders Colombia, the world's top cocaine producer.

    Under the agreement, Venezuela will purchase four ocean patrol boats and four coasting vessels from Spain's state-controlled shipyard Navantia. Spanish aircraft producer EADS-Casa will supply 12 transport planes, according to Venezuela's Ministry of Information. Defense Minister Orlando Maniglia said the deal will include the "transfer of technology," as the last patrol boat would be constructed in Venezuela, allowing Venezuelans to acquire more knowledge about the military equipment. The sale will be complete in three years, and the first shipments are due to arrive in 18 months, he said.

COLOMBIA PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE FORMALLY ANNOUNCED THAT HE WILL RUN FOR A SECOND TERM

    BOGOTA, COLOMBIA.- Colombian President Alvaro Uribe formally announced that he will run for a second term in next year's elections, saying Sunday he needed four more years to accomplish his goals of restoring security to the country and spurring economic growth. Uribe, a close U.S. ally, becomes the first Colombian president in more than a century to run for re-election. The move came after his supporters in Congress passed a constitutional amendment earlier this year lifting a long-standing ban on presidential re-election. Colombia's highest court upheld the change.

    "I will work so that our country can consolidate democratic security, meet the social goals of eradicating poverty and definitively root out corruption," Uribe, 53, said in a brief televised speech announcing his decision. Polls show that Uribe would sweep to victory in the May 28 presidential vote, thanks to his tough military policies against leftist rebels and drug traffickers. In the 3 1/2 years since he came to power, crime has dropped, the economy has been on the upswing and the army has pushed the guerrillas from many of their traditional strongholds. Jaime Dussan, leader of the left-wing Independent Democratic Pole party, acknowledged that Uribe will be hard to beat. "Uribe has occupied all the political ground in the country," Dussan told local radio Sunday.

SPAIN DEFENSE MINISTER, JOSÉ BONO, ARRIVES IN VENEZUELA TO EXECUTE PURCHASE OF MILITARY HARDWARE

  CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- On Monday, the Venezuelan government will execute an agreement with Spanish companies to buy weaponry despite US warnings, Venezuelan ambassador to Spain Arévalo Méndez Romero said Wednesday.  Spanish daily El País, close to the government, reported that the sales agreement would be executed on November 28, 2005 in Caracas by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez and Spanish Defense Minister José Bono. The newspaper added that Chávez "conditioned the initialization of the agreement to Bono's presence.

    The Spanish government is to make any decisions "that may benefit Spain and the interest of its industrial sector" with "transparency and clarity," said Bono in a reference to the planned sale of military equipment to Venezuela, Efe reported.  Bono's comments came in response to a controversy concerning the likely signature of a sales agreement under which Spanish firms are to sell aircrafts and frigates to Venezuela.

    When asked about the possibility that the United States denies authorization for such operation, as the equipment involved comprise US technology, Bono said he would do "anything the Spanish government decides to do." Bono is to act on behalf of the Spanish government during execution in Caracas of a bilateral military cooperation agreement providing for the sale of Spanish aircrafts and patrol boats to Venezuela, a deal opposed by the United States administration. 

IRAN'S PRESIDENT MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD SAYS BUSH ADMINISTRATION SHOULD BE TRIED FOR WAR CRIMES

   TEHERAN, IRAN.- Iran's hard-line president said Saturday the Bush administration should be tried on war crimes charges, and he denounced the West for pressuring Iran to curb its controversial nuclear program. "You, who have used nuclear weapons against innocent people, who have used uranium ordnance in Iraq, should be tried as war criminals in courts," Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in an apparent reference to the United States.

    Ahmadinejad did not elaborate, but he apparently was referring to the U.S. military's reported use of artillery shells packed with depleted uranium, which is far less radioactive than natural uranium and is left over from the process of enriching uranium for use as nuclear fuel. "Who in the world are you to accuse Iran of suspicious nuclear armed activity?" Ahmadinejad said during a nationally televised ceremony marking the 36th anniversary of the establishment of Iran's volunteer Basij paramilitary force.

    Iran insists that it has the right to fully develop the program, including enrichment of nuclear fuel - a process that can produce fuel for nuclear reactors or atomic bombs. Ahmadinejad dismissed Western concerns over his country's nuclear program. "They say Iran has to stop its peaceful nuclear activity since there is a probability of diversion while we are sure that they are developing and testing (nuclear weapons) every day," Ahmadinejad said. "They speak as if they are the lords of the world."

COLOMBIA PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE "VERY PLEASED" WITH VENEZUELA VISIT OUTCOME

   BOGOTÁ, COLOMBIA.-  The visit of Colombian President Álvaro Uribe to his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez was highly satisfactory, with the two rulers having constructive talks with clear positions, Colombian Foreign Minister Carolina Barco told AFP. According to the minister, Chávez promised to visit Colombia next December.

    As reported by the senior official, Uribe emphasized that execution of the Free Trade Agreement with the United States is most important for Colombia. Both Colombian and Venezuelan government authorities will monitor the event "for the benefit of the two nations."

    Barco maintained that during the meeting, Uribe and Chávez agreed on the need for integration of Andean countries in order to reinforce an economic block.   "Colombia, Ecuador and Peru view as important the access to more markets. This is the case for Venezuela, which is looking for a niche in the marketplace of Uruguay, Brazil and other countries, such as the Arab nations," she added.

JOSE MARIA AZNAR: HUGO CHAVEZ' MODEL THREATENS FREEDOM AN DEMOCRACY

   SANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC.- Former head of the Spanish government José María Aznar said in Santo Domingo that the recipe of Venezuelan and Cuban rulers Hugo Chávez and Fidel Castro, respectively, "is dreadful," Aznar labeled Chávez as one of the major dangers facing Latin America, adding that the model the Venezuelan ruler endorses is endangering freedom and democracy. His comments came in an interview with Dominican daily "Hoy" published on Friday.

    He added that the Venezuelan President is set to make any possible efforts to expand his government model throughout the region. According to Aznar, there are people in Bolivia, Ecuador and Colombia willing to endorse "Chávez' formula," as it "has plenty of money." The former head of Spanish government claimed that should Chávez' model find adepts in the region, a backlash in democracy and economic growth should be expected. He added that populist caudillos and authoritarian governments could return to power too.

    When referring to the way Chávez has clashed with US President George W. Bush, Aznar said that it is very easy to attack anybody when oil prices are at USD 60. "I do not think he is brave, but he is imprudent. Insulting half the world is not an act of courage. When you do not have good results to display, you have to insult others," Aznar told "Hoy." He added that Chávez' demagogy, populism, insults, disqualifications and his imprudence to attend the fourth Summit of the Americas, and participate in an "anti-summit" are "shameful."

SPANISH FOREIGN MINISTER DEFENDS MILITARY HARDWARE SALES TO HUGO CHAVEZ

   MADRID, SPAIN.- Spain's foreign minister Thursday defended a deal to sell military hardware to Venezuela despite U.S. opposition on the grounds that some of it contains U.S. technology. Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos said the planned sale by two Spanish companies is strictly a business deal and should not harm Spain's relations with the U.S. He also questioned whether the U.S. can veto it, a possibility raised Wednesday by the U.S. Ambassador to Spain, Eduardo Aguirre.

    Moratinos said he believed the U.S. can block the sale of American components "but I do not know if this includes the carrying out of the sale" altogether. The deal calls for two companies - Spanish state-controlled shipyard Navantia and EADS-Casa, an aircraft manufacturer that is part of a European consortium in which the Spanish government holds a 5% stake - to sell $2 billion worth of military transport planes and patrol boats to the government of President Hugo Chavez.

    The deal - which is Spain's largest-ever defense order - comprises eight patrol boats and 10 military transport planes. Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero announced the agreement during a visit to Venezuela in March. Aguirre said the U.S. is weighing whether it would block the transaction because the planes carried U.S. technology. But Moratinos told a current affairs forum Thursday that the deal is simply " an issue among companies, which have to negotiate as companies." He said that no matter what the final outcome is, "I don't think (Spanish-US relations) will suffer."

COLOMBIA'S PRESIDENT URIBE MEETS WITH HUGO CHAVEZ TO DISCUSS BRIDGING DIFFERENCES, OIL PIPELINE 

   PARAGUANA, VENEZUELA.-The presidents of Colombia and Venezuela met Thursday to solidify plans for a Venezuelan gas pipeline through Colombia to the Pacific, and to consider a separate oil pipeline. The two countries tentatively agreed last year to build a US$300 million (255 million) underwater gas pipeline connecting Venezuela's Paraguana peninsula with Colombia's La Guajira gas fields. The deal included the possibility of later extending the pipeline to Panama and other Central American nations to give Venezuelan gas exports crucial access to the Pacific Ocean.

    Hugo Chavez has been pressing Colombia to build a separate oil pipeline that would give Venezuela, the world's fifth-largest oil exporter, crucial access to Colombia's Pacific ports, allowing him to ship more oil to Asian countries and decrease reliance on U.S. markets. Uribe has confirmed the issue is on the agenda.

    Relations have been strained at times when Colombian officials have accused Chavez of not doing enough to crack down on the flow of leftist rebels, arms and drugs across their shared border. Chavez has countered that Venezuela has stepped up patrols along the remote border and is doing everything possible to block the movement of armed groups and drugs. Thursday's one-day summit at the Paraguana oil refinery complex was the first one-on-one meeting between the presidents since February.

HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS URGE EUROPEAN UNION TO TOUGHEN POLICY TOWARD CUBA

   PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC.- Human rights organizations from three European countries on Thursday called on the European Union to increase support for Cuba's pro-democracy movement and toughen its approach to President Fidel Castro's communist regime. "Effective political sanctions, rather than policy of appeasement toward a dictator in office for 46 years, are essential to ensuring basic human rights," the Czech Republic's People In Need, Slovakia's Pontis Foundation and The International Society for Human Rights based in Frankfurt, Germany, said in a statement released Thursday.

    The three groups proposed that the EU should strengthen its role of "a promoter of human rights and democracy in Cuba" and "establish a relationship with the Cuban government based on a responsible and reliable human rights policy," the statement said. In doing so, the EU "should demand a report of the Cuban government's adherence to human rights in Cuban prisons and labor camps" and "free elections and freedom of opinion for the Cuban population," it said.

    The EU should also make sure that Cuba cannot become a member of U.N. Human Rights Commission or U.N. Human Rights Council, it said. EU foreign ministers in January lifted punitive sanctions against Cuba after authorities there released 14 of 75 political prisoners for medical reasons last year. "It was not a right step," Kristina Prunerova of People In Need said Thursday. "The human rights situation in Cuba only got worse," she said.

U.S. AMBASSADOR TO SPAIN ASKS HUGO CHAVEZ TO EXPORT JUST OIL INSTEAD OF THE BOLIVARIAN REVOLUTION

   MADRID, SPAIN.- US ambassador to Spain Eduardo Aguirre thinks that the Venezuelan government should limit itself to export oil instead of the Bolivarian Revolution advanced by President Hugo Chávez. "On several occasions, president Chávez has expressed interest in exporting the Bolivarian revolution. We prefer not to see such an export. In any case, oil export is enough," Aguirre told reporters during the Europe Forum, a meeting involving politicians, businesspersons and diplomats held in Madrid.

Also, the ambassador added that his country would like to see stability in the Western hemisphere. The senior official expects that sale by Spain of military materials to Venezuela does not take place; in reference to an agreement to buy eight patrol boats and twelve transportation planes at the end of 2005. 

VENEZUELA TO PURCHASE OTHER USD 300 MILLION IN ARGENTINEAN BONDS

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA.-Hugo Chávez' government is reportedly set to purchase other USD 300 million in Argentinean debt bonds, said Argentinean newspapers. Conservative estimations place the operation at USD 300 millions. Venezuelan Finance Ministry, through the Social and Economic Development Bank (Bandes), has already bought USD 950 million in Bonden expiring in 2012. During his meeting with Argentinean President Néstor Kirchner earlier this week, Chávez stressed: "we have made money with these bonds; these bonds are good."

    According to El Clarín daily, Argentinean financial needs amount to USD 2.2 billion. Also during their meeting in southern Venezuela, Chávez and Kirchner underscored the need to create a Latin American financial fund to support regional development. Venezuelan Finance Minister Nelson Merentes has repeatedly claimed that his country is exploring the South American market of public bonds, and purchase of Brazilian and Bolivian bonds has not been ruled out.

CATTLE, FARMING GROUPS CAUTIOUS ABOUT VENEZUELA'S PLAN TO JOIN MERCOSUR

  CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Cattle and farming associations expressed concerns Tuesday about President Hugo Chavez's plan for Venezuela to join the South American trade bloc Mercosur, saying it could leave them vulnerable to cheap Argentine and Brazilian imports. Chavez discussed plans for Venezuela to become a full member of the group with Argentine President Nestor Kirchner on Monday. Kirchner's government has backed Venezuela's bid to join the bloc, which includes Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay.

    Gustavo Moreno, president of the farmers association Fedeagro, said his group and the private sector should help decide the terms of Venezuela's membership in the group. "We would hope to first set import duty barriers," Moreno said. Venezuela produces rice, plantains and coffee, but still imports much of its food. The country's main cattle ranching association also said it was concerned about competition with cheaper Brazilian and Argentine beef. Mercosur members are expected to discuss plans for Venezuela to join the trade bloc in Uruguay on Dec. 9, and Chavez has said his country's admittance is a "done deal."

BOB MENENDEZ MAY BE SELECTED FOR THE VACANT SENATE SEAT OF NEW JERSEY

   TRENTON, NEW JERSEY.- The election of U.S. Sen. Jon Corzine, a Democrat, to the governor's office in New Jersey two weeks ago has created a rare open seat in the U.S. Senate, and Hispanic groups are agitating for the post to go to U.S. Rep. Bob Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat born to Cuban parents. The plethora of candidates is daunting: Nearly every Democratic member of New Jersey's congressional delegation has signaled interest, and Corzine -- who will make the selection -- is said to also be looking at elevating a black female state senator.

   The stakes are high. The appointee would be forced to defend the seat in November 2006 against an aggressive and well-funded challenge from Republican state Sen. Tom Kean Jr., the son of former New Jersey Gov. Tom Kean. National Democratic leaders, intent on taking back the Senate, are said to be nudging Corzine to select Richard Codey, the current acting governor who, unlike the congressmen interested in the seat, bested Kean in a recent poll.

    But Hispanic groups, mounting a high-profile public relations campaign that aims to put party leaders on the spot, have not been shy in signaling their outrage that Menendez is not by default the presumed front-runner. 'They always come to us [Hispanics], they always say `You're critical in the election,' '' U.S. Rep. Joe Baca, a California Democrat, said of his party leaders. ``If that's the truth, well, here's the situation to show us that the party is there for the Latinos.''

MAGISTRATE REFUSES TO RELEASE TWO FRIENDS OF LUIS POSADA CARRILES

   MIAMI, FLORIDA.- A federal magistrate refused to release two close allies of Cuban exile militant Luis Posada Carriles, reasoning the pair posed a danger to the community. The U.S. government's case against developer Santiago Alvarez and construction worker Osvaldo Mitat contains the kind of intrigue that turned Posada's own life into the stuff of Cuban exile lore: A secret cache of weapons, a fake Guatemalan passport, betrayal by a supposed turncoat.

    The government's affidavit of arrest states that U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents intercepted a FedEx package last month sent from Guatemala to Alvarez's Hialeah office that contained a fake Guatemalan passport in the name of ''Santiago Alvarez Fernandez'' and a fake Guatemalan identification card. The affidavit also accuses Alvarez of sending a cooler full of hand grenades, automatic weapons and a silencer to Mitat, a delivery made by an informant who tipped off federal authorities.

    On Monday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrea Simonton refused to release the pair because their mere possession of automatic weapons, grenades and rounds of ammunition amounted to a ''crime of violence'' and posed a danger to the community. The judge, handed a list of support from almost 120 family members, friends and exile leaders, said she did not believe the two men were a flight risk, however, because of their long, close ties to Miami. Lawyers for Alvarez and Mitat maintained their clients are innocent. Their arraignment is set for Dec. 6.

VICE-PRESIDENT CHENEY ATTACKS THOSE WHO SUPPORTED THE WAR IN IRAQ AND NOW CRITICIZES IT  

   WASHINGTON, D.C.- Vice President Dick Cheney charged Monday that some Senate Democrats were "dishonest and reprehensible" for suggesting that President Bush lied to the nation about going to war in Iraq and said he strongly disagrees with a battle-tested congressman who advocates a pullout.

    Cheney said in a speech at the American Enterprise Institute that there is no problem debating whether the United States and its allies should have gone to war in Iraq, but he questioned the statements of some critics. "What is not legitimate, and what I will again say is dishonest and reprehensible, is the suggestion by some U.S. senators that the president of the United States or any member of his administration purposely misled the American people on prewar intelligence," Cheney said.

    Cheney again said that "withdrawal would be a victory for terrorists" and an "invitation to further violence." "It is a dangerous illusion that another retreat by the civilized world would satisfy the appetite of terrorists .. We will not retreat in the face of adversity."

HUGO CHAVEZ SAYS VENEZUELANS MUST BE PREPARED TO REPEL POSSIBLE US INVASION

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Hugo Chavez said Sunday he was ready to flee to the mountains, gun in hand, to help Venezuelans fight a guerrilla war against a possible invasion by the United States as he defended his decision to purchase 100,000 Russian-built Kalashnikov assault rifles. "We will do what we can to avoid (a war), but I've told the generals and admirals ... that we must have the rifles ready because, who knows, if a president later has to go prepared into the mountains ... we must be prepared," he said during hiss weekly radio and television program "Hello President.".

    Chavez, an ally of Cuban leader Fidel Castro, said he "will do everything humanly possible to avoid a war here; that's the last thing we want." Chavez said he would fight a guerrilla-style war against Americans if necessary. "It wouldn't bother me at all to end up on a mountain with a rifle defending the dignity of this country," the former army colonel said. "The leaders of this country have to ready to make an example, even give our lives if we have to."

 POLL SHOWS CONSERVATIVE CANDIDATE GAINING ON MEXICAN PRESIDENTIAL FRONT-RUNNER

   MEXICO CITY, MEXICO.- Mexico's longtime presidential front-runner, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, is suddenly in a close race with conservative candidate Felipe Calderon, according to a poll published Monday. According to the survey conducted by Grupo Reforma, Lopez Obrador of the leftist Democratic Revolution Party was favored by 29 percent while 28 percent backed Calderon of President Vicente Fox's National Action Party, putting them into a statistical tie.

    Roberto Madrazo of the Institutional Revolutionary Party or PRI was favored by 21 percent. The poll had a margin of error of 2.5 percentage points and covered 1,515 people across Mexico between Nov. 11-14. During the survey, 13 percent of respondents said they did not know who they would vote for.

    Lopez Obrador led most polls on Mexico's 2006 presidential race for the last two years. He resigned as Mexico City mayor in July to launch his campaign. A poll released last week by the Consulta Mitofsky group found that 34.8 percent would vote for Lopez Obrador compared to 30.4 percent for Madrazo and 28.8 percent for Calderon.

SALVADORAN DEFENSE MINISTER VISITS TROOPS IN IRAQ

   SAN SALVADOR, EL SALVADOR.- El Salvador's defense minister and two federal legislators are in Iraq to visit the Central American nation's troops, the government said Monday. Gen. Otto Romero and legislators Jose Almendariz and Guillermo Gallegos arrived in the southern Iraqi city of Hillah on Saturday to "strengthen the morale" of El Salvador's 380 soldiers there, said a news release from the Ministry of Defense.

    The Salvadoran troops, scheduled to be replaced in February, are carrying out peacekeeping and humanitarian work in Hillah, including rebuilding schools. El Salvador is the only Latin American nation with a military presence in Iraq. Two of its soldiers have been killed there, one by Iraqi insurgents and one in an accident.

RAFTER CAUGHT AND RETURNED FOUR TIMES TO CUBA

   HAVANA, CUBA.-  Cuban authorities have fined rafter Jesús Hernández Matamoros 1,500 pesos - the equivalent of about nine months salary - after he was caught and returned to the island for the fourth time. Hernández Matamoros, 33, said he was summoned by State Security officials August 16 and questioned for four hours about his frustrated attempts to reach the United States. Hernández Matamoros works at the José Martí International Aiurport, but he was demoted from his job as a specialized equipment operator.

PRESIDENT BUSH VOWS TO 'STAY IN THE FIGHT' IN IRAQ

   OSAN, SOUTH KOREA.- U.S. President George W. Bush vowed on Saturday "we will stay in the fight" until victory in Iraq, rejected critics' calls for a troop pullout timetable and insisted progress is being made in Baghdad. Amid turmoil in Washington over Iraq and waning American support for the war, Bush held fast to his open-ended commitment in Iraq, saying U.S. troops would stay until Iraqi forces could defend themselves.

    Bush's remarks amounted to a response to one of the most hawkish Democrats in Congress, Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha, who urged the administration on Thursday to pull out U.S. forces as soon as it could be done safely, estimating that it would take about six months. Bush quoted a top U.S. commander in Iraq, Major-General William Webster, as saying that setting a deadline for withdrawal would be "a recipe for disaster," and said that as long as he was president, "our strategy in Iraq will be driven by the sober judgment of our military commanders on the ground." "We will fight the terrorists in Iraq, we will stay in the fight until we have achieved the victory that our brave troops have fought for," he said.

 AGENTS TARGET POSADA ALLY 

   MIAMI, FLORIDA.- Federal authorities searched the Hialeah office of Cuban exile militant Luis Posada Carriles' biggest benefactor Friday, the same day that a Cuban group ran a full-page advertisement in The New York Times denouncing Posada. The investigation of Posada's close friend Santiago Alvarez may signal a hardening by the U.S. government in the Posada case at a time when the Bush administration is facing tough scrutiny for its treatment of suspected terrorists abroad.

    But probing the background of Posada's South Florida associates may cause a political migraine for the Republican president, whose party counts anti-Castro exiles among its most loyal constituencies. Alvarez, a developer, has been a stalwart supporter of Posada for years and helped shelter him in Miami before authorities arrested him in May. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement declined to say what they were looking for in his office.

    But a federal source told The Herald that ICE agents suspect Alvarez recently received counterfeit Guatemalan passports, the basis for the search. Alvarez's lawyer, Kendall Coffey, said his client is innocent of any wrongdoing and maintained he did not know what the government expected to find. He also said that Cuban leader Fidel Castro's repeated attacks on Posada and his allies may be bearing fruit. ''The reality is that there is movement against Posada on at least two fronts on the same day,'' Coffey said. “It may well be a coincidence, but it is certainly fascinating.''

HUGO CHAVEZ SAYS HE HOPES DIPLOMATIC DISPUTE WITH MEXICO 'COOLS OFF' 

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Hugo Chavez said Saturday he hoped a diplomatic flap between Mexico and Venezuela that prompted the countries to withdraw their ambassadors is soon resolved. "We don't want the conflict to increase. Instead, we want it to cool off," said Chavez, who donned a sombrero and downplayed a recent war of words with Mexican President Vicente Fox.

    Addressing a crowd of roughly 5,000 supporters outside Miraflores Presidential Palace, Chavez sang several songs - including a tune about troubled relationships - accompanied by a Mexican mariachi band. He blamed the United States for spurring the diplomatic dispute with Mexico.

    "The one to blame for this lamentable conflict with the Mexican government is none other than Mr. Danger and his strategy of division," said Chavez, referring to U.S. President George W. Bush. U.S. officials have denied Washington caused the spat. The Venezuelan leader said he respects Mexican President Vicente Fox, and called the diplomatic impasse "unfortunate." "I respect the dignity of the Mexican president just as he is obliged to respect the dignity of the Venezuelan president," Chavez said. The two countries recalled their ambassadors Tuesday after the war of words escalated.

DIAZ-BALART THANKS PRESIDENT BUSH AND THE REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL LEADERSHIP FOR STANDING WITH CUBA'S RIGHT TO BE FREE

   WASHINGTON, D.C.- Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL) today thanked President Bush and the House and Senate Republican Congressional Leadership for once again standing with the Cuban people’s right to be free and against the anti-American, totalitarian dictatorship in Havana. Language was stripped out of the Fiscal Year 2006 Treasury-Transportation appropriations bill which would have prohibited funding for the enforcement of the law which regulates sales to the Cuban dictatorship.

    “President Bush has never wavered in his commitment to prevent any amendment which would weaken sanctions on the terrorist Cuban regime from becoming law,” said Congressman Diaz-Balart. “Freedom loving people everywhere, and especially the oppressed people of Cuba and their friends in the United States, will never be able to sufficiently express our gratitude to the President for his unwavering support. 

    We are also profoundly grateful to Speaker Hastert, Leader Frist, Chairman Lewis, Chairman Knollenberg and the entire House and Senate Leadership for their steadfast support of freedom. The message sent cannot be clearer: There will be no unilateral concessions to the Cuban dictatorship. There will be no weakening of sanctions until all political prisoners are released; all political parties, labor unions and the press are legalized; and free elections are scheduled in Cuba.”

 TALK OF U.S. PLOTS AGAINST CHAVEZ STIR CONCERN, DOUBT IN VENEZUELA

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Hugo Chavez accuses Washington of plotting to overthrow him, calls U.S. President George W. Bush a "murderer" and is expelling some American missionaries for alleged links to the CIA. Venezuelans are sharply divided between those who fear a U.S. attack and others who call the talk a fantastic ploy by Chavez to distract attention from real problems, like corruption and crime.

    "The people of the United States are governed by a murderer ... a crazy man!" Chavez said in a speech Thursday night. "Military plans to attack Venezuela are in full preparation," Chavez told thousands of demonstrators recently at an international summit in Argentina, warning that a U.S. attack would trigger a "100-year war." Chavez, who is up for re-election next year, has clashed frequently with the United States since he took office in 1999 promising a "revolution" for the poor.

    He says Venezuela must be prepared to defend itself and has called for volunteers to join the army reserve while ordering 100,000 Russian-made Kalashnikov rifles. He has seized on intelligence documents released by the U.S. showing the CIA knew beforehand that dissident military officers planned a 2002 coup against him. Chavez was briefly ousted but was restored to power by loyalist generals amid a popular uprising.

PRESIDENTIAL RACE GETS VERY CLOSE

   MEXICO CITY, MEXICO.- A new poll shows Mexico's long-standing presidential front-runner, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, slipping to a statistical tie with his two closest competitors. According to the poll released Wednesday by the Consulta Mitofsky group, López Obrador would receive 34.8 percent of the vote compared to 30.4 for Roberto Madrazo of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI. Felipe Calderón of the conservative National Action Party, or PAN, would receive 28.8 percent of the vote. The poll had a margin of error of 4 percentage points.

CASTRO MEETS WITH CUBA'S CATHOLIC LEADERSHIP

     HAVANA, CUBA.- Fidel Castro met with top leaders of Cuba's Roman Catholic church to mark the nation's 70 years of diplomatic ties with the Vatican. The island's top Catholic churchman Cardinal Jaime Ortega, all of Cuba's bishops, and the Holy See's diplomatic representative here, Papal Nuncio Msgr. Luigi Bonazzi, were among church leaders who met Wednesday night with Castro and other government leaders, the Communist Party daily Granma reported.

    During a dinner hosted for the group by Castro, the Cuban president recalled the historic visit by the late Pope John Paul II to the island in January 1988, and "expressed that the greatness of John Paul II was his wonderful way of seeing and understanding the problems of the world today," the newspaper said in a front page story.

    Communist Cuba became officially atheist in the years after the 1959 revolution that brought Castro to power, but the government removed references to atheism in the constitution more than a decade ago and allowed religious believers to join the Communist Party. Diplomatic relations between the Cuban and the Vatican remained intact over the decades.

IRAN NUCLEAR MOVES ALIENATE RUSSIA, A KEY ALLY

   VIENNA, AUSTRIA.- -Iran's reluctance to act to allay international fears about its nuclear agenda is increasingly alienating Russia, a key ally. Angering Moscow, in turn, is helping U.S. efforts to force Iran to answer to the U.N. Security Council about its atomic dossier. Most recently, Iranian officials told the Russians that they wouldn't resume uranium conversion - only to restart the process a few hours later.

    Iran served notice several weeks ago that it would process a new batch of raw uranium into a precursor of the gas used to enrich uranium - which can produce either nuclear fuel or the fissile core of weapons. Iranian officials told the Russian just that a re-launch was postponed for "technical reasons."

    The Russians interpreted that as a political signal, raising hopes of an easing of tensions just weeks before Nov. 24, when the 35-nation board of IAEA meets in Vienna on U.N. Security Council referral. But just hours later, the Iranians told the Russians that conversion had restarted, further eroding Russian good will, which Tehran crucially needs to deflect the U.S. and European push for Security Council involvement.

JOSÉ MARÍA AZNAR URGES NATO TO EXPAND ITS GEOGRAPHIC SCOPE

   WASHINGTON, D.C.- Former Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar said that democracies like Japan, Australia and Israel should be invited to join NATO to make the alliance more effective in the fight against terrorism. "In order to win this battle against the terrorist evil, NATO must expand its geographical scope," Aznar said. A "new NATO" must be forged to deal with new realities, he added.

    Aznar spoke to a gathering at the American Enterprise Institute. He said that an expanded NATO should include countries that not only share democratic values but which are "plagued by terrorism and the risks inherent in the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction." The report said NATO must become the military instrument of democracies in the face of the new "totalitarian movements" that are on the offensive.

    "We believe that the best way of doing this is to open up to various countries in their fight against terror," it said. "Bringing Israel into the alliance is an extremely important step in this respect." In his remarks, Aznar also said it is no longer possible to draw a line "between international security and internal or homeland security." "We are under attack from outside our borders as well as from within," he said. Aznar also said that terrorism cannot be separated from the problem of proliferation. "We know that Islamists have no red line and are willing to kill as many people as they can," he said. .

TWO COURT EMPLOYEES ATTACKED SADDAM HUSSEIN

   BAGHDAD, IRAQ.- Two court employees attacked Saddam Hussein and punched him several times after he cursed two Shiite Islam saints, state-run Iraqi television reported Wednesday Iraqiya television, quoting people close to the investigative judges, did not say when the incident occurred. However, Saddam's lawyers said in July that their client was attacked during an interrogation session. The chief investigative judge of the special court dealing with Saddam denied the claims at the time.

    Iraqi TV reported late Wednesday that the incident occurred after Saddam was being questioned about his efforts to suppress the 1991 Shiite uprising in southern Iraq, which broke out after U.S.-led forces drove Iraq's army from Kuwait. The shrines of half brothers Imam Hussein and Imam Abbas in the Shiite holy city of Karbala were damaged by Saddam's forces as they crushed the uprising, killing tens of thousands of Shiites.

    "Saddam insulted Imam Hussein and his brother Imam Abbas provoking two of the court's clerks who were taking notes. They attacked the tyrant and punched him several times," the station said. It did not elaborate. "There was an exchange of blows between the man and the president," the statement said, also claiming that the judge overseeing the hearing did nothing to stop the assault.

STOWAWAY FROM CUBA GETS ASYLUM IN THE UNITED STATES

     MIAMI, FLORIDA.- A Cuban woman who arrived in Miami as a stowaway inside a wooden crate on a cargo flight from the Bahamas is being allowed to stay permanently in the United States. Sandra De los Santos was granted political asylum Monday, nearly 15 months after a crew unloading the filing cabinet-sized DHL crate discovered her at Miami International Airport.

"Now I really feel that I am firmly here, without fear," De los Santos, 25, said after her hearing in immigration court. "I am still nervous, but today I consider myself touched with happiness." De los Santos said she was studying English and hoped to become an ultrasound technician. In his decision, Judge Rex Ford cited the risk of persecution she would face if she were returned to Cuba.

De los Santos, a former law student at the University of Havana, left Cuba for the Bahamas in May 2004. Three months later, she tucked herself into the DHL box and remained there in a fetal position for six hours, while temperatures in the plane at times dropped to freezing levels. Under the so-called wet-foot, dry-foot policy, Cubans who reach U.S. soil are usually allowed to stay, while most picked up at sea are sent home.

LADY IN WHITE FORCED TO LEAVE PLAZA DE LA REVOLUCIÓN

   HAVANA, CUBA.- Berta Soler Fernández, wife of imprisoned dissident Angel Moya Acosta, says she was ordered out of the Plaza de la Revolución area last week while waiting to deliver a letter of protest about her husband to President Fidel Castro.  "It appears that I'm not a citizen of this country," she said.

  Soler Fernández said she went to the Council of State to deliver the letter but that she was told that a Mr. Montes de Oca was in a meeting. When she returned an hour later, she said an official named José told her that she would not be received by anyone and to remove herself from the area of Plaza de la Revolución. Moya Acosta, who was sentenced to 20 years during the trials of 75 dissidents in 2003, was operated on for a herniated disk last year. He was recently moved to the Combinado del Este prison where his wife said conditions were not good for him.

MEXICAN EX FOREIGN MINISTER WANTS TOTAL BREAK WITH VENEZUELA

     MEXICO CITY, MEXICO.- ex Foreign Minister Jorge Castañeda urged Monday to break off relations and accused Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez of intervening in elections of some Latin American nations, Efe reported. Bilateral links should be radically broken, Castañeda told radio show "Enfoque" after Venezuelan Minister of Integration and Foreign Trade Gustavo Márquez expressed that he was behind an anti-Venezuela campaign.

Márquez's remarks emerged amidst a dispute between Mexican President Vicente Fox and his Venezuelan counterpart concerning their stances on the establishment of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA.)
 The two governments announced Monday that they would recall their respective ambassadors and left diplomatic relations at the level of deputy chiefs of mission. "It is well known that Venezuela's threads are moved from Havana, and there they think that I decide everything that is going on in Mexico in this regard. I am pretty much flattered because both Cubans and Venezuelans think that I have so much power. Unfortunately, this it not the case," Castañeda said.

WAVE OF ARRESTS IN THE CUBAN CAPITAL

    HAVANA, CUBA..- Police have been carrying out a series of arrests in central and Old Havana following the killings of several foreign tourists. To date, there is no official word on the deaths, so the nationalities of the victims and the circumstances of their deaths are unknown. Dissident human rights organizations talk of two or three deaths.

    The roundup of suspects is being carried out by joint teams from the National Revolutionary Police, the Department of Technical Investigations and the Interior Ministry's special tactical group. Coordination is said to be under the Interior Ministry. The target of the roundups are mainly young people who frequent parks and other popular places. Some of those picked up have been sent back to their provinces of origin.

HUGO CHAVEZ TELLS MEXICAN PRESIDENT VICENTE FOX: 'DON'T MESS WITH ME' 

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.-  Hugo Chavez accused Mexican leader Vicente Fox of disrespecting him and his close ally the Argentine president, warning Fox: "Don't mess with me." Tensions between Fox and Chavez spilled over after this month's Summit of the Americas in Argentina, where Fox sought to defend a U.S.-backed proposal for a free trade zone while Chavez proclaimed the idea dead.

    "President Fox left bleeding from his wound," Chavez said Sunday during his weekly radio and TV show, echoing remarks last week in which he accused Fox of being a "puppy" of the U.S. government for supporting its plans for the Free Trade Area of the Americas. Chavez recalled a folk song from Venezuela's cattle-raising plains about a thorn, saying it seems appropriate for Fox since "you're a man of horses." After reciting the lyrics, Chavez said: "Don't mess with me, sir, because you'll come out pricked."

    Fox, apparently irked by the resistance of Chavez and Argentine President Nestor Kirchner, said after the summit that "we have some presidents, fortunately a minority, who blame other countries for all their problems." Chavez accused Fox of attacking him and Kirchner, and of violating summit protocol in trying to press for an agreement on the free trade zone when that wasn't on the agenda. "The only very hard response I've given to any president was ... to President Fox. He disrespected me," Chavez said, adding that by responding he was simply defending his country. Playful as usual, Chavez sang lyrics from folk songs and replayed a video of Bush tepidly applauding and looking on blankly, saying leaders' expressions "speak a world" about what they didn't say.

IRAN, CUBA REVIEW EXPANSION OF MUTUAL RELATIONS, INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS

    TEHERAN, IRAN.- Visiting Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque conferred here Sunday with President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on expansion of mutual relations between the two countries.  Underlining the deeply-rooted ties between the two nations, Ahmadinejad said, "We hope that given new wave of revolutionary moves inspired by freedom-seeking as well as justice-seeking spirit of world nations along with the intellectuals of some South American countries, we will witness further coordination and convergence in rescuing the countries from hegemonic powers in those region."

    The president referred to administration of justice as among the only solution to alleviate humans sufferings and said through joint cooperation and taking advantage of the vast potentials of the international fora and the Non-Aligned Movement in particular as well as expansion of cooperation among member states, it would be possible to swiftly change the current hegemonic system to the benefit of nations around the world.

    Ahmadinejad called for further expansion of political, economic, cultural and social relations between Iran and Cuba.  The Cuban foreign minister, for his part, declared his country's definite support of Iran's international policies mainly on peaceful application of nuclear technology and called for expansion of all-out relations between Tehran and Havana.

MEXICO, VENEZUELA CONTINUE TO DISCUSS VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT'S CRITICISM

     MEXICO CITY, MEXICO.- The foreign secretaries of Mexico and Venezuela had a friendly telephone conversation Saturday, as this country seeks an explanation for Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez stinging criticism of his Mexican counterpart, Vicente Fox. In a statement, Mexico's Foreign Relations Department praised the "progress that has been made" in its relations with Venezuela after Foreign Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez had a "cordial and productive" talk with Ali Rodriguez, the foreign secretary of Venezuela. But Chavez's government apparently offered no apology for his comments.

    On Wednesday, the Venezuelan president accused Fox of acting like a "puppy" of the United States for so staunchly supporting the U.S.-backed Free Trade Area of the Americas, or FTAA, during the Americas summit in Argentina last week. During several days of diplomatic sparring, the Venezuelan government has refused to apologize. "We demand a satisfactory explanation," Mexico's presidential spokesman, Ruben Aguilar told a news conference Friday. "If this doesn't happen, we will take appropriate steps." He did not elaborate.

    In his remarks Wednesday, Chavez said, "It makes me sad that a heroic nation like Mexico has a president that kneels before the empire and then comes out knocking those who defend the dignity of our communities." "How sad that the president of a great country like Mexico allowed himself to be the puppy of the (U.S.) empire," Chavez said.

UNITED STATES COMPANIES SELL $259M OF GOODS TO CUBA

     HAVANA, CUBA.- American companies sold $259 million of food and agricultural products to Cuba, including shipping and bank fees, at last week's trade fair, the head of the island's food import company Alimport said Friday. Pedro Alvarez said his company expects to sign contracts worth $40 million more by year's end.

    Alimport also signed contracts with companies from other countries, agreeing to buy $67 million of rice from Vietnam, $35 million of powdered milk from New Zealand, $33 million of meat and beans from China, and $25 million of chicken from Brazil, among others. Tight U.S. restrictions on trade with the communist-run island make doing business with the United States a hassle, but Cuba has no plans of halting its purchases any time soon, Alvarez told The Associated Press.

    "If Cuba were to paralyze these purchases, it would go against American farmers," he said. "Cuba is not going to put the brakes on commerce with the United States." U.S. farmers and members of Congress representing agricultural, often Republican, states have become some of Cuba's top lobbyists, pushing for normalized trade with the island. Cuba has been under an American trade embargo for more than four decades, but a law passed by Congress in 2000 allows American food to be sold directly to the island on a cash basis. Recent restrictions require Cuba to pay for the goods in full before they leave American ports.

ONE STEP CLOSER TO WILLY CHIRINO'S DREAM 

    MIAMI, FLORIDA.- Willy Chirino, whose danceable anti-Castro songs have a following in Cuba despite being banned, will be singing to Cubans in exile and in the island when his Nov. 19 concert, celebrating his career's 35th anniversary, is broadcast to Cuba live from the James Knight Center via Radio and TV Martí.

    Although the Cuban government blocks such transmissions, which exiles claim counteract the propaganda on the island's media, Radio and TV Martií officials say they have evidence Cubans manage to receive them via illegal (often homemade) satellite dishes and other means, and then they are recorded and passed around clandestinely. The concert, which will also be heard on Miami radio, will go to Cuba via satellite, short wave and Web streaming. ''This is a first step in a dream I've had for a long time,'' said Chirino. “Singing in a free Cuba.''

SECRETARY OF STATE CONDOLEEZZA RICE MAKES UNANNOUNCED VISIT TO IRAQ

     MOSUL, IRAQ.- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice expressed hope Friday that a deal could be reached with Iran regarding its nuclear program. But she would not confirm that the U.S. would back a deal with Europe, described by senior officials and diplomats, to accept expanded Iranian nuclear activities if uranium enrichment is done in Russia.

    "There is no U.S.-European proposal to the Iranians," Rice said. "I want to say that categorically. There isn't and there won't be." The E.U., led by the U.K., France and Germany, has negotiated with Tehran to allow legitimate civilian nuclear power development in Iran while preventing a spinoff of technology that could produce a bomb. The U.S. contends Iran has covert ambitions for a bomb, which Iran denies.

    She also predicted that the U.S. has sufficient support at the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency to send Iran before the Security Council for possible sanctions. The International Atomic Energy Agency meets on Nov. 24, but a deal ahead of that date could avert a vote. Rice was in Iraq on an unannounced visit. Rice's trip included a stop in Bahrain for meetings on development and democratic progress in the Middle East. She will also visit Saudi Arabia, Israel and the West Bank.

VENEZUELA TO RECEIVE 30,000 ASSAULT RIFLES, THREE HELICOPTERS FROM RUSSIA BY YEAR'S END

    CARACAS, VENEZUELA.-Russia will deliver 30,000 Kalashnikov assault rifles and three helicopters to Venezuela by the year's end, Russian and Venezuelan officials said during talks Thursday. The first 15,000 rifles will arrive Dec. 15, with an identical shipment to follow on Dec. 30, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Zhukov said.

    They are to be the first weapons under a deal for 100,000 Russian-made Kalashnikov AK-103 and AK-104 rifles signed by Venezuela in May. The remaining 70,000 rifles will arrive in March, Zhukov said. U.S. President George W. Bush has expressed concern the guns could fall into the hands of other groups, such as leftist Colombian rebels, and become a destabilizing force in South America.

    But Venezuelan officials call that ridiculous and say the rifles will simply be used to replace outdated FAL rifles used by the Venezuelan military. Russian officials also have brushed aside U.S. criticism, saying they will go ahead with the arms deal. Venezuelan Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel said the military agreements "are absolutely normal" and are a sovereign matter of Venezuela. He said three helicopters bought from Russia would arrive by the end of the year.

HUGO CHAVEZ CALLS MEXICAN PRESIDENT VICENTE FOX A "PUPPY DOG" OF THE UNITED STATES

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Hugo Chavez Wednesday branded Mexican President Vicente Fox the "puppy dog" of U.S. imperialism for backing Washington's trade policies at the recent Summit of the Americas in Argentina. "It makes one sad to see the sell-out of President Fox, really it makes one sad," said the Venezuelan leader, who has become one of Washington's fiercest critics in the region.

     "How sad that the president of a people like the people of Mexico lets himself become the puppy dog of the empire," he told an audience of middle-class supporters and businessmen. Chavez, an ally of Cuba's Fidel Castro, promised to use the summit to "bury" the free trade deal he portrays as an example of the "evils of capitalism". He presents his self-described socialist revolution for the poor as the alternative.

    The Mexican government responded swiftly to Chavez's remarks, demanding an explanation from Venezuela's envoy. "The Venezuelan ambassador Vladimir Villegas Poljak has been summoned to present an explanation in this case," Mexico's foreign ministry said in a statement. Fox, a conservative who has been close to Washington on trade issues, accused Argentina's left-leaning President Nestor Kirchner of pandering to opinion polls instead of pushing a free trade accord backed by U.S. officials at the summit. The Mexican leader also took a slap at Chavez's left-wing ideology.

SANGUINETTI CRITICIZES HUGO CHAVEZ WORKING AGAINST WASHINGTON 

     ASUNCION, URUGUAY.- The attacks of Hugo Chávez targeted at his US counterpart George W. Bush during the Summit of the Americas show a populist stance based on emotion instead of reason, Uruguayan ex president Julio María Sanguinetti said. "They are the expression of immaturity that mirror survival in Latin America of a populist psychology based on an assembly and shout-like democracy," Sanguinetti told ABC Color daily.

    Sanguinetti, who was twice president of Uruguay, paid a short visit to Asunción, the capital city of Paraguay, where he delivered a speech on The Night of Broken Glass, a massive, coordinated attack on Jews throughout the German Reich on the night of November 9th, 1938.  According to the ex ruler, Chávez "uses more emotion than reason. This has been one of the major problems in our historical Latin America." "It is clear that the United States lacks a true Latin American agenda. Latin America is not among US priorities, as the focus has been placed on fight against international terrorism."

CZECH FOREIGN MINISTER THREATENED WITH DEATH BECAUSE OF POLICY TOWARD CUBA

     PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC.- An anonymous caller threatened to shoot dead Czech Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda and his family unless the country changes its policy toward Cuba, police said Wednesday. Spokesman David Kubalak said police received the call on an emergency number Monday. "We informed the minister and adopted appropriate measures," Kubalak said.

    Relations between Cuba and the Czech Republic have deteriorated since the demise of communism here in late 1989. Last week, the Foreign Ministry summoned the Cuban charge d'affaires in Prague, Ayme Hernandez Quesada, to protest an attempt by Cuban authorities to prevent a celebration of the Czech Republic's national holiday by diplomats in Havana on Oct. 28. The reception, which was relocated to the residence of the Czech charge d'affaires in Havana, was attended by foreign diplomats as well as Cuban dissidents. Cuban government officials boycotted it.

SUICIDE BOMBERS ATTACK HOTELS IN JORDAN-- AT LEAST 57 KILLED AND MORE THAN 150 WOUNDED IN THREE HOTELS OF AMMAN

   AMMAN, JORDAN.- Suicide bombers attacked three hotels frequented by Westerners in the Jordanian capital Wednesday night, and at least 23 people were killed and more than 120 wounded in the near-simultaneous explosions, police said.  Maj. Bashir al-Da'aja said officials believe all three blasts were carried out by suicide bombers. The explosions indicated the involvement of al-Qaida, which has launched coordinated attacks on high-profile, Western targets in the past, a police official said.

    One explosion occurred in a wedding hall where 300 guests were celebrating. Black smoke rose into the night and wounded stumbled out of the hotels. A Jordanian official said, the strong suspicion is that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the Jordanian-born leader of the al-Qaida in Iraq terrorist group, was involved because of his known animosity for Jordan and the fact that suicide bombers were involved, one of his hallmarks.

    The first blast was reported at about 8:50 p.m. at the luxury Grand Hyatt hotel, popular with tourists and diplomats, and completely shattered its stone entrance. A few minutes later, police reported an explosion at the Radisson SAS Hotel a short distance away. Police said five people were killed and at least 20 were wounded in the blast at a wedding hall where at least 300 people were celebrating. A third explosion was reported at the Days Inn Hotel, and police said there were casualties.

CARIBBEAN LEADERS TO CONDEMN VENEZUELA'S CLAIM OVER WATERS AROUND TINY ISLAND

     MEADES BAY, ANGUILLA.- Caribbean countries agreed Tuesday to formally condemn Venezuela's claim over waters around a tiny, uninhabited island that some believe sits near oil and natural gas deposits, officials said. Wrapping up a two-day regional summit, leaders of the nine-member Organization of Eastern Caribbean States said they have requested a meeting with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to discuss his country's claim to waters around Aves Island, which which is located about 565 kilometers (350 miles) north of Venezuela.

    Venezuela has defended its ownership of the island since 1865, even though the dry, treeless speck of land is much closer to several Eastern Caribbean islands like Dominica and Antigua. "We are going to issue a strong statement of condemnation" of Venezuela, Antiguan Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer said during the summit in Anguilla. On Monday, the leaders said they may appeal to the U.N. Law of the Sea Convention for mediation in the decades-old dispute, voicing concern over Venezuela's stance reaffirming its ownership of the island by holding weddings and baptisms at a military outpost there.

VICE PRESIDENT RANGEL THINKS THAT THE "EMPIRE" IS BEHIND CLAIM TO AVES ISLAND

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuelan Vice-President José Vicente Rangel rebutted Wednesday an agreement reached by Eastern Caribbean rulers to condemn formally the Venezuelan claim the waters surrounding Aves Island, and hinted that the United State is possibly behind the action. "Venezuela has been exercising sovereignty since about 1800. I think that the empire's long arm is involved in this mobilization around Aves Island," Rangel said.

    The action will help "to prove (...) if we have a truly Venezuelan opposition or a transnational opposition." "It is possible that they take sides with those who deny Venezuelan sovereignty on Aves Island," the senior official added.

ONCE AGAIN, UNITED NATIONS URGES UNITED STATES TO LIFT CUBA EMBARGO

   UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK.- Nearly every country in the world joined Tuesday to urge the United States to lift its four-decade old economic embargo against Cuba in a record U.N. General Assembly vote. The vote, held for the 14th consecutive year, was 182 to 4 with 1 abstention on a resolution calling for Washington to lift the U.S. trade, financial and travel embargo, particularly its provisions penalizing foreign firms.

    The measure is nonbinding and has had no impact on the United States, with the Bush administration having tightened restrictions against Cuba. The United States for the first time downplayed the entire debate that included more than two dozen speakers. Its envoy, Ronald Godard, use a procedure allowing him to make a short speech from his seat. "If the people of Cuba are jobless, hungry or lack medical care, as Castro admits, it is because of his economic mismanagement, not the embargo," Godard said.

DROP IN CUBA EXPORTS HURT TRADE DEFICIT 

     HAVANA, CUBA.- Low nickel prices and a decline in sugar sales have reduced Cuban exports this year while imports are on the rise, deepening a trade deficit, officials said. Exports rose 30 percent from 2003 to 2004 when the island nation sent abroad more than US$2 billion (euro1.7 billion) in goods, accounting for 27 percent of the country's US$7.5 billion (euro6.4 billion) in total trade.

    Yet this year through September, exports have accounted for just 23 percent of Cuba's trade, compared to 77 percent of imports, said Antonio Carricarte, the deputy foreign trade minister. He did not provide the overall value of this year's trade. "Exports show a certain decline, due primarily to the decrease in the sales of sugar and its derivatives as well as the fall of prices for nickel in the international market," Carricarte said in an interview in the government's business weekly Opciones. He did not provide specific figures.

    Tobacco sales, however, were up 12 percent this year, he said, as were nontraditional exports in the biotechnological, pharmaceutical and technical service sectors. Imports, meanwhile, rose 34 percent through September of this year, led by purchases of oil, food and machinery from countries including Venezuela, China, Spain, and the United States, Carricarte said. Overall, trade has grown about 22 percent in the first nine months of 2005 compared to the same period in 2004, the official said.

FOUR FORMALLY CHARGED WITH ALLEGEDLY PLOTTING ASSASSINATION OF VENEZUELAN PROSEDUTOR

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.-Venezuelan authorities formally charged two people with allegedly forming part of the group that planned the assassination of a high-profile prosecutor, who was investigating a 2002 coup against Hugo Chavez. Venezuela-based Cuban dissident Salvador Romani and Eugenio Anez Nunez - a retired general also facing other charges including inciting insurrection during the coup - were charged with premeditated murder and aggression at a hearing in Caracas Sunday, prosecutor Yoraco Bauza told reporters.

    The accused are two of four people that authorities issued an arrest warrant for on Friday for allegedly masterminding the murder of Danilo Anderson, who died Nov. 18, 2004 when a plastic explosive ripped apart his sport-utility vehicle in Caracas. Prosecutors are also seeking to detain Patricia Poleo, the director of El Nuevo Pais newspaper who has alleged that Anderson was part of a high-level government extortion ring, and Nelson Mezerhane, a co-owner of the opposition-aligned private broadcaster Globovision.

    Attorney General Isaias Rodriguez has claimed that the group had larger plans to assassinate Chavez and overthrow the government but that they killed Anderson because he was an easier target. Three ex-police officers have been indicted for allegedly carrying out Anderson's murder. Venezuelan officials say at least two more suspects, Johan Pena and Pedro Lander, are in the United States and are pursuing their extradition.

FRENCH HOPING CURFEWS BRING END TO UNREST 

     PARIS, FRANCE.- President Jacques Chirac declared a state of emergency Tuesday, paving the way for curfews to be imposed on riot-hit cities and towns in an extraordinary measure to halt France's worst civil unrest in decades after 12 nights of violence. Police, meanwhile, said overnight unrest Monday-Tuesday, was still widespread and destructive but not as violent as previous nights. "The intensity of this violence is on the way down," National Police Chief Michel Gaudin said, citing fewer attacks on public buildings and fewer direct clashes between youths and police. He said rioting was reported in 226 towns across France, compared with nearly 300 the night before.

    The state-of-emergency decree - invoked under a 50-year-old law - allows curfews where needed and will become effective at midnight Tuesday, with an initial 12-day limit. Police who have been massively reinforced as the violence has fanned out from its initial flash point in Paris' northeastern suburbs were expected to enforce the curfews. The army has not been called in.

    The mayhem sweeping the neglected and impoverished neighborhoods with large African and Arab communities is forcing France to confront anger building for decades among residents who complain of discrimination and unemployment. Although many of the French-born children of Arab and black African immigrants are Muslim, police say the violence is not being driven by Islamic groups. Nationwide, vandals burned 1,173 cars overnight, compared with 1,408 vehicles Sunday-Monday, police said. A total of 330 people were arrested, down from 395 the night before.

IRAN PROTESTS OVERFLIGHTS BY UNMANNED UNITED STATES AIRCRAFT

   UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK.- Iran sent protests to the United States condemning the overflights by two unmanned American aircraft which crashed in Iran in recent months, according to documents circulated Monday. Iran's deputy U.N. ambassador Mehdi Danesh-Yazdi asked the U.N. Security Council on Oct. 26 to circulate two letters protesting "the violation of the territory and airspace of Iran by two American unmanned aircrafts."

    The two letters, which were circulated Monday, warned that "the government of the United States of America will be responsible for the consequences of any recurrence of its unlawful acts." According to the letters, an American Shadow-200 (RQ-7) aircraft crashed about 38 miles inside Iranian territory in Ilam province on July 4, and an American Hermes aircraft crashed 125 miles inside Iranian territory in the Khoram Abad area on Aug. 25.

    The United States and Iran have not had diplomatic relations since shortly after the Iran hostage crisis began in 1979. The letters were sent from Iran's Foreign Ministry to the Swiss Embassy in Tehran, which represents the United States. "The government of the Islamic Republic of Iran strongly protests against such unlawful acts and emphasizes the necessity to observe the principles of international law concerning the sanctity of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, and calls for an end to such lawful acts," both letters said.

FORMER PERUVIAN PRESIDENT ALBERTO FUJIMORI ARRIVES IN CHILE 

     SANTIAGO, CHILE.- Fugitive former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori arrived in Chile Sunday saying he intends to return to Peru to again seek the presidency. Chilean officials remained silent and seemed to be caught by surprise by the arrival of Fujimori at a time of tension between Chile and Peru over sea boundaries. "It is my purpose to remain temporarily in Chile, as part of the process for my return to Peru," Fujimori said in a communique issued by his office in Lima and sent to several Chilean media.

    The statement said Fujimori wanted to "fulfill my pledge to an important sector of the Peruvian people that has called on me to participate as candidate to the presidency of the Republic in the coming election in 2006." Peruvian Congress, however, has issued a ban on Fujimori holding public office until February 2011. Ultimately, the National Elections Board must decide whether to veto his candidacy if he registers to run. Local media reported that Fujimori, 67, arrived in a private plane from Mexico by mid-afternoon Sunday with four other people who were not identified.

ALBERTO FUJIMORI ARRESTED IN CHILE

     SANTIAGO, CHILE.- Chile arrested early on Monday Peru's disgraced ex-President Alberto Fujimori, wanted in Peru on human rights abuse and corruption charges, police said. Fujimori was arrested at the Marriott Hotel in Santiago after arriving on Sunday afternoon on a surprise visit from Japan. "He did not resist the arrest, on the contrary," said Marianela Gomez, the head of Interpol in Chile. "He is completely calm." It was unclear where he was being held.

    Peruvian Foreign Minister Oscar Maurtua had told reporters in Lima late on Sunday that Fujimori had been arrested by Chilean police and moved from his hotel. There are international arrest warrants outstanding for Fujimori. Chilean courts processed a local arrest warrant on Sunday, enabling police to take him into custody.  Peru was planning to launch a suit at the International Court in The Hague this year to try to force Japan to send the former president to Peru for trial. Japan had refused to extradite Fujimori, born in Peru to Japanese immigrants, because he obtained citizenship after moving there in 2000.

TWO CUBAN WOMEN DROWNED IN AN ALLEGED SMUGGLING ATTEMPT OFF KEY

     KEY WEST, FLORIDA.- Two Cuban women died when they were trapped underneath a boat that capsized during a suspected migrant smuggling operation in the Florida Straits, the U.S. Coast Guard said Sunday. The 28-foot, center-console speedboat with 37 people aboard was taking on water in four- to six-foot seas Saturday when a Coast Guard cutter found it, Petty Officer Dana Warr said. A rescue boat was launched and crew members gave life jackets to everyone aboard, Warr said. The crew removed 15 people from the boat and transferred them to the cutter on the scene, about 65 miles south of Key West.

    As the rescue crew returned to the boat, it capsized under a wave and dumped 22 people into the water. All but two people were rescued, and the bodies of two women wearing life jackets were found early Sunday under the boat, the Coast Guard said. The women were identified by relatives in the group, but their names were not released.

    ''There were 37 people on a 28-foot boat, and it was grossly overloaded, probably beyond the specifications of that boat,'' Warr said. The 35 Cubans and the two bodies have been transferred to a Coast Guard cutter. The bodies were being taken to the Monroe County medical examiner in Key West, Warr said. One suspected smuggler was among the group on the cutter, Warr said. The group will be interviewed by U.S. officials to determine their status. This weekend's incident is the second in less than a month where a Cuban migrant died at sea.

November 07

PRESIDENT BUSH CALLS ON LATIN AMERICANS TO DEFEND DEMOCRACY

   BRAZILIA, BRAZIL.- President Bush didn't name names Sunday when he called on Latin Americans to boldly defend strong democratic institutions and reject any drift back to the days of authoritarian rule. But his remarks were a clear jab at Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. The leftist leader and friend of Cuba's Fidel Castro spent the past two days hurling criticism at the United States at the Summit of the Americas in Argentina.

    Eyeing three upcoming presidential elections in Latin America, Bush said citizens must choose "between two competing visions" for their future. One, he said, pursues representative government, integration into the world community and freedom's transformative power for individuals. "The other seeks to roll back the democratic progress of the past two decades by playing to fear, pitting neighbor against neighbor and blaming others for their own failures to provide for the people," he said. "We must make tough decisions today to ensure a better tomorrow."

UNREST REACHES PARIS WHERE 32 CARS ARE TORCHED

     PARIS, FRANCE.-French President Jacques Chirac on Sunday promised arrests, trials and punishment for those sowing "violence or fear" across France - as the urban unrest that has triggered attacks on vehicles, nursery schools and other targets hit central Paris for the first time.  Youths set ablaze nearly 1,300 vehicles and torched businesses, schools and symbols of French authority, including post offices and provincial police stations, on the 10th consecutive night of unrest.

    The violence took another alarming turn with attacks in the well-guarded French capital. Police said 35 cars were torched, most on the city's northern and southern edges. In central Paris, gasoline bombs damaged three cars near Place de la Republique. Residents reported a loud explosion and flames.

   Chirac spoke after a security meeting of his top ministers. "The law must have the last word," Chirac said in his first public address on the violence. Those sowing "violence or fear" will be "arrested, judged and punished." "The absolute priority is restoring security and public order," he said. He said security measures would be reinforced. Arsonists burned 1,295 vehicles nationwide overnight Saturday-Sunday - sharply up from 897 the night before, national police spokesman Patrick Hamon said, adding that police made 349 arrests nationwide.

PRESSURED BY HUGO CHAVEZ, LEADERS FROM ACROSS THE AMERICAS FAIL TO AGREE ON FREE TRADE TALKS

   MAR DEL PLATA, ARGENTINA.- ANTA CLARA, CUBA.- Leaders from across the Americas ended their two-day summit Saturday without agreeing whether to restart talks on a free trade zone stretching from Alaska to Chile. Argentine Foreign Minister Rafael Bielsa said the summit's declaration would state two opposing views: one favoring the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas, and another saying discussions should wait until after World Trade Organization talks in December.

    The decision came after negotiations extended eight hours past the scheduled deadline. Almost all the leaders - including President Bush - left during the discussions and put other negotiators in charge. Mexico, the United States and 27 other nations wanted to set an April deadline for talks, but that was opposed by Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Venezuela.

    The United States says the proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas, stretching from Canada to Chile, would open up new markets for Americans and bring wealth and jobs to Latin America. The zone's main opponent, Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez, said it would enslave Latin American workers. He came to the summit vowing to "bury FTAA. In the declaration, the five dissenting countries stated: "The conditions do not exist to attain a hemispheric free trade accord that is balanced and fair with access to markets that is free of subsidies and distorting practices." 

RIOTING SPREADS TO NEW CITIES IN FRANCE, MORE FIRES BREAK OUT ON NINTH NIGHT OF VIOLENCE

     AUBERVILLIERS, FRANCE.-Marauding youths torched nearly 900 vehicles, stoned paramedics and burned a nursery school in a ninth night of violence that spread from Paris suburbs to towns around France, police said Saturday. Authorities arrested more than 250 people overnight - a sweep unprecedented since the unrest began. For the first time, authorities used a helicopter to chase down youths armed with gasoline bombs who raced from arson attack to arson attack, national police spokesman Patrick Hamon said.

    The violence, which was concentrated in neighborhoods with large African and Muslim populations but has since spread, has forced France to address the simmering anger of its suburbs, where immigrants and their French-born children live on the margins of society. With 897 vehicles destroyed by daybreak Saturday, it was the worst one-day toll since unrest broke out after the Oct. 27 accidental electrocution of two teenagers who believed police were chasing them. Five hundred cars were burned a night earlier.

    In a particularly malevolent turn, youths in the eastern Paris suburb of Meaux prevented paramedics from evacuating a sick person from a housing project, pelting rescuers with rocks and torching the awaiting ambulance, an Interior Ministry official said. A nursery school was badly burned in Acheres, west of Paris. A police officer at the Interior Ministry operations center said bullets were fired into a vandalized bus in Sarcelles, north of Paris. Firefighters battled a furious blaze at a carpet warehouse in Aubervilliers, on the northern edge of Paris.

CUBA SAYS IT HAS NO NEED FOR VENEZUELAN F-16s

   SANTA CLARA, CUBA.- Communist Cuba said Friday it had no need for F-16 fighter jets offered this week as a gift by leftist ally President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. "We do not need the planes, and he (Chavez) has not made a formal offer," said Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque. Chavez said Tuesday his government may give its U.S.-made F-16 fighters to Cuba or China and replace them with Russian or Chinese aircraft after accusing Washington of blocking purchases of U.S. military parts.

    Chavez has become the closest ally of Cuban President Fidel Castro, whose air force is equipped with Soviet-built MiGs. "The idea sounds legitimate, because Chavez is quite right in rejecting the United States for refusing to sell spare parts," Perez Roque told reporters. The Cuban minister said Venezuela was not a military threat to the United States.

    "The U.S. government does not have the moral authority nor the legitimacy to demand arms control by other countries: it is spending no less than $500 billion this year on weapons," he said. Perez Roque said he was certain Venezuela would come to Cuba's defense if it was attacked. Washington sold Venezuela 24 F-16 fighter aircraft in the 1980s when Caracas was seen as an ally against Cuba. Ties have deteriorated steadily since Chavez was elected in 1998.

HUGO CHAVEZ: WE ARE IN MAR DEL PLATA TO ATTEND FUNERAL FOR FTAA 

     MAR DEL PLATA, ARGENTINA.- Hugo Chávez said a proposed Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) "is dead," on his arrival in Argentinean coastal resort of Mar del Plata for participation in the fourth Summit of the Americas. He also ensured that the "US empire is weak," as evidenced by the fact that regional presidents and heads of government are to endorse a declaration that is to leave FTAA aside. "FTAA is dead and we are attending a funeral here (in Mar del Plata)," Chávez told reporters.

    He also sent "Bolivarian and heartfelt greetings to the Argentinean people," as well as to "all the peoples whose representatives are participating in this summit." Chávez is to deliver a speech at the closing ceremony of the so-called third Summit of the Peoples, an event parallel to the Summit of the Americas and organized by groups opposed to free trade negotiations. "Only people can save our nations, only unity shall make us free," the Venezuelan ruler said when confirming his attendance to the event.

    "We will be there, we are very inspired and enthusiastic," he added. The final event of the Summit of the Peoples is to take place at 40,000-seat stadium of Mar del Plata. Besides Chávez, former soccer star Diego Maradona, and singers Silvio Rodríguez, from Cuba; Daniel Viglirtt, from Uruguay, and Víctor Heredia, from Argentina, are to participate in the closing ceremony.

DAUGHTER OF CIA PILOT SHOT DOWN AND EXECUTED DURING THE BAY OF PIGS INVASION  ASKS COURT TO ORDER HANDOVER OF DICTATOR FIDEL CASTRO GOVERNMENT ASSETS

    NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK.- The daughter of an American pilot shot down over Cuba during the Bay of Pigs invasion nearly 45 years ago has asked a court to order JPMorgan Chase & Co. to turn over more than $22 million in assets held on behalf of the Cuban government. Janet Weininger, the daughter of American pilot Thomas Ray, was awarded compensatory damages of $22.5 million and punitive damages of $65 million by a Florida court in June after suing Cuba for the torture and death of her father and desecration of his body.

    Ray, an Alabama Air Guard pilot on a mission for the Central Intelligence Agency, was shot down over Cuba in April 1961 during the unsuccessful, three-day Bay of Pigs invasion, which was undertaken by CIA-trained Cuban exiles, according to the lawsuit. He survived the crash and was summarily tortured and executed, according to court documents. His remains were returned to the United States in the late 1970s.

    In July, Weininger filed an action in New York state court seeking the garnishment of funds held on behalf of Cuba by JPMorgan Chase Bank in New York. Chase Bank, which is holding more than $72 million that the government of Cuba or its agents have interests in, says it is unable to turn over the money because Cuban funds are effectively frozen in the United States, the lawsuit says.

FORMER SENIOR OFFICER CLAIMS VENEZUELA NEEDS US AUTHORIZATION TO TRANSFER F-16

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Retired major general Maximiliano Hernández, former commander of the Venezuelan Air Force, ensured that President Hugo Chávez' government cannot sell or dispose of US-made F-16 fighter jets without US authorization, as Washington owns their technology. In 1982, Hernández conducted negotiations to purchase 24 F-16 planes from the United States. He clarified, however, that under the F-16 sales agreement penalties shall be imposed only in the event of the purchaser's failure to meet payments or delayed delivery by the manufacturer.

    On Tuesday, Chávez threatened President George W. Bush' administration with sending Venezuela's F-16 planes to Cuba or China. The Venezuelan ruler stressed: "when a party fails to comply with an agreement, the other party is entitled to disclaim such agreement."  "This decision cannot be made unilaterally. This is a foreign policy issue. If the United States finds it convenient to disclose F-16 technology to other countries, then they should allow a country to give those planes to unsuitable countries. Cuba has no relevant aeronautical tradition, as it has not developed aeronautical technology. The Chinese may be, but they do not have an outstanding position in this field, as their planes are manufactured under Russian license," the senior officer stressed.

FORMER DAS HEAD: CHAVEZ' ACCUSATIONS ARE A RESPONSE TO ESPIONAGE CLAIMS

     BOGOTÁ, COLOMBIA.- Hugo Chávez' accusations that Colombian secrete service DAS is plotting against him is a response to claims that a Venezuelan military officer was spying in Colombia, Thursday said former head of DAS Jorge Noguera. "With all due respect, President Chávez' remarks could be a reply to a report published in Cambio magazine related to a judiciary investigation in Colombia on alleged espionage activities by a Venezuelan colonel in Colombia," Noguera told Radio Caracol. He resigned from DAS last October 25 amid a scandal involving alleged infiltration of DAS by ultra-right wing paramilitary.

    Noguera made reference to Cambio magazine reports that Venezuelan colonel Carlos Hernández Astudillo, an attaché of the Venezuelan Consulate in border town of Bucaramanga, spied on military, politicians and journalists opposed to Chávez in Colombia from 2000 to 2005. On Wednesday, Colombian President Álvaro Uribe urged Chávez to produce evidence supporting his claims against DAS, and said he is to make this suggestion to Chávez during the Summit of the Americas that will be held November 4-5 in Mar del Plata, Argentina.

November 03

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS OVERTURNED ORIGINAL CONVICTIONS FOR FIVE CUBAN SPIES

     ATLANTA, GEORGIA.- The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals late Monday threw out a ruling in August by a three-judge appellate panel that had overturned the convictions of five Cuban men accused of spying for Fidel Castro. Now the appeals process starts all over again. The Atlanta appellate court must decide whether the five Cuban defendants -- convicted of infiltrating Miami's exile community and trying to pass U.S. military secrets to Havana -- received a fair trial in a community that despises Castro.

    This time, a majority of the 12-member appellate court has agreed to rehear the so-called Cuban Five's appeal, which leaves the case in limbo for several more months. Prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney's Office said they were ''gratified'' with the full court's decision to rehear the appeal, which came in a brief response to their challenge in September.

    In August, the 11th Circuit's three-judge panel found that pretrial publicity made it impossible for the defendants to receive a fair jury trial in Miami. Its 93-page decision meant the retrial would have to be conducted in a city outside of Miami. But in a petition, Acting U.S. Attorney R. Alexander Acosta asked all 12 members of the appellate court to review the ruling. Former U.S. Attorney Guy Lewis, whose office prosecuted the spy case during his tenure, said the panel's opinion was flawed because not a single Cuban American was picked as a juror.

HUGO CHÁVEZ PONDERS PARTICIPATION IN ANTI-BUSH MARCH IN BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Hugo Chávez is thinking over the possibility to take part in a march intended to show repudiation against US President George W. Bush during his visit to Mar del Plata, Argentina, for the fourth Summit of the Americas in November 4-5, local Unión Radio reported on Wednesday. During an interview with regional TV channel Telesur late Tuesday, Chávez would not confirm his attendance to the demonstration, arguing security reasons, Unión Radio informed, as quoted by DPA.

    "I have an invitation, and I am assessing this together with my security staff. I would love to go, I have said so. I appreciate this invitation. But there are problems going on there. An area in the city has been closed, and the stadium (where the event is to take place) is a little bit far from the wall (the summit security ring)." Chávez explained that going out and in the summit security ring could involve some problems. "I do not want to cause any troubles, I am going there with humbleness to expose my ideas," Chávez said, as quoted by Union Radio.

    He insisted he is to bring forward a debate regarding the US-sponsored Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). Chávez sees this proposal as integration plan the "empire" has designed to dominate the peoples in the region. Chávez reminded a previous summit where Bush said he would continue to cooperate with the Organization of American States to achieve democracy in Haiti, Bolivia and Venezuela, AFP reported. Bush "named Venezuela, I took a deep breath, and said nothing," but this time "if President Bush said that again, I would reply immediately, because this is a people with dignity and will not let him run over us," Chávez added.

 HUGO CHÁVEZ ACCUSES COLOMBIAN DAS OF FABRICATING PLOTS AGAINST VENEZUELA

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Hugo Chávez claimed that Colombian secret service (DAS) is "fabricating conspiracies" against his government and acting together with Colombian Armed Forces as independent agencies. "We have many pieces of evidence about conspiracies (in DAS) being designed against Venezuela," Chávez said referring to DAS. He recalled that the Colombian institution is going through a serious "crisis" amidst reports of infiltration by ultra-right wing paramilitary, AFP reported.

    In an interview with regional channel Telesur, Chávez maintained that he had conveyed such claims to his Colombian counterpart Alvaro Uribe, and even to former Colombian President Andrés Pastrana. He added that DAS officers "faked" an attack against Uribe. "If they staged a simulated attack against Uribe himself, what can you expect them to do with Chávez," he wondered. He added that Colombian Armed Forces have acted together with DAS as autonomous bodies operating off the orders of the Colombian Executive Power.

HUGO CHAVEZ SAID VENEZUELAN F-16 COULD BE SENT TO CUBA

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuela could send to Cuba or China some F-16 planes previously bought from the United States, "as they are reluctant to sell us the spare parts," President Hugo Chávez said. "Failure to perform the agreement allows for either party to waive it," Chávez cautioned during a ceremony to execute an agreement with Chinese company Wall to develop the Simón Bolívar telecommunications satellite.

    "Therefore, we can do with those planes whatever we please. All of a sudden, we can send 10 planes to Cuba, or China to investigate the technology," he added. As explained by Chávez, Venezuela has looked for spare parts elsewhere. "And they (the United States) began to exert pressure on those countries to prevent them from providing support for the F-16 maintenance." Recently, the US government forced Israel to freeze an agreement to streamline Venezuelan F-16, AFP reported.

HUGO CHÁVEZ HAPPY TO FACE PRESIDENT BUSH IN ARGENTINA 

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Hugo Chávez said his US counterpart George W. Bush is to use his participation in upcoming November 4-5 Summit of the Americas "to try to resuscitate FTAA." Chávez made these remarks Sunday during his 238th weekly radio and TV show "¡Aló, Presidente!" (Hello, President!). The Venezuelan ruler claimed that his government is to increase education spending from 2.8 percent of GDP to 7 percent of GDP -USD 8.6 billion-, stressing that such move is one of the efforts his administration is making to advocate the socialist model, as opposed to Washington-backed neo-liberalism.

    He forecast that debate during the Summit of the Americas, to be held in Mar del Plata, Argentina, would be "great." "I can imagine that! This gentleman (US President George W.) Bush plans to continue to propose his thing. It appears that he wants to resuscitate FTAA . FTAA is dead! It needs to be buried! The peoples in this continent are to bury it and another integration model is to emerge," Chávez exclaimed.

LARGE AMERICAN REPRESENTATION IN CUBAN TRADE FAIR

     HAVANA, CUBA.- More than 300 representatives of 171 American firms will attend the International Fair of Havana, which runs through Saturday, said Pedro Alvarez, head of the Cuban food import company Alimport. "We have a larger American participation this year despite the restrictions," Alvarez said as he toured the Expo Cuba fairgrounds on Havana's outskirts. "But the (Bush) administration has created serious obstacles for small and medium-sized companies."

    Nevertheless, he said sales have remained relatively stagnant since last year because of recent U.S. regulations that require Cuba to pay for the goods in full before they leave American ports. Cuba paid $474 million to buy American farm goods last year, including transportation and banking costs, compared with $409 million for the first 10 months of 2005, Alvarez said. "But by the end of the year we hope to purchase an amount equal or slightly superior to that of the previous year," he added.