03 - 31 - 06

IRAN PLANNING WAR GAMES TO BOOST "DEFENSE CAPABILITIES"

       TEHRAN, IRAN.- Tens of thousands of elite Revolutionary Guards will begin military maneuvers Friday in the Persian Gulf and the Arabian sea, with a top commander saying the exercise was designed to boost Iran's "defense capabilities" against possible threats. Gen. Morteza Saffari, the Guards' navy commander, did not mention the United States by name but was clearly referring to Washington, which is leading a drive to impose U.N. Security Council sanctions against Iran over its suspect nuclear activities.

    "Improving the preparedness of the armed forces in defending Iran's independence and territorial integrity and boosting our defense capabilities are among the reasons for holding these maneuvers," state-run television quoted Saffari as saying Thursday. It also quoted him as saying that 17,000 guardsmen were taking part in the weeklong maneuvers, along with gun boats, unmanned aircraft, fighter jets and helicopter gunships.

    "We hope these maneuvers will help us improve our readiness to respond to any threats (against Iran)," Saffari was quoted as saying. Iran, which views the United States as an arch foe, is concerned about the U.S. military presence in neighboring Iraq and Afghanistan. It's also concerned about Israel's threats to destroy its nuclear facilities.

LUCIA NEWMAN, CNN REPORTER IN CUBA, QUITTING TO JOIN AL JAZEERA

       HAVANA, CUBA.- Lucia Newman is CNN's first and only correspondent based in Havana, Cuba. However, she has decided to leave her current position and join the new Al-Jazeera International network, which will launch later this spring. Newman will be based in Al-Jazeera's bureau in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

    The English-language network will be an offshoot of Al-Jazeera, the influential Arabic network that has come under fire from the Bush administration. Al-Jazeera International will broadcast from offices in Doha, Qatar; London; Washington and Kuala Lumpur. As of yet, no American cable or satellite company has said it will carry Al-Jazeera International. With limited space available, it's often difficult for new networks to get substantial carriage commitments, even those without potential political baggage.

    Al-Jazeera International has said it expects to be in about 40 million homes worldwide at launch.  Newman joined CNN in 1987. She was based in Panama, Nicaragua, Chile and Mexico before CNN opened its first bureau in Cuba in 1997.

VENEZUELA VP RANGEL RULES OUT ANY "DWARVES" GANG IN THE JUDICIARY

    CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuelan Executive Vice-President Wednesday ensured he has no information about a gang linked to drug-traffickers known as "the dwarves" that allegedly operates within the judiciary. His remarks came following claims by Luis Velázquez Alvaray, a judge of the Supreme Tribunal of Justice who recently resigned from his position as the head of the Judiciary Steering Committee amidst embezzlement allegations, that Rangel was aware of the existence of such a criminal group.

    Rangel refused to comment on the issue, and asked Velázquez Alvaray to elaborate on his claims. "The only dwarves I know are the dwarves of the circus, and a diplomat who is a dwarf," said Rangel, in an indirect reference to US ambassador William Brownfield. Rangel added Velázquez Alvaray would have to demonstrate if the alleged gang of judicial officials has links with drug-traffickers. "Prove it!" he said. "Some people are very irresponsible."

ANTI-GOVERNMENT SIGNS APPEAR IN INTERIOR MUNICIPALITY OF CUBA  

       CIENFUEGOS, CUBA.- Cuba, Anti-government signs were put up on two downtown streets in the municipality of Rodas last week. One sign that said "Long Live Bush, Down with Fidel" drew curious passersby on Independencia Street.

Another sign on Martí Street said, "Long Live Bush's Fifth Congress," an allusion to the fact that the Communist party of Cuba will shortly hold a congress. Lázaro Roger Avilés, who reported this information, said, "This is just a reflection of the frustration that affects the Cuban people."

03 - 30 - 06

PRESIDENT BUSH REFUSES TO REPLY TO CHÁVEZ'S INSULTS

       WASHINGTON, D.C.- United States President George W. Bush Tuesday refused to reply to his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez' verbal attacks. "I do judge President Chávez based on his respect for institutions in Venezuela," Bush told CNN in an interview. The news TV network asked Bush about his reaction when Chávez "refers to you in very strong terms."

    In the interview broadcast late Tuesday, the US ruler added that "it is very important for leaders to respect freedom of cult and freedom of the press and to allow people to express their opinion without fear." "As long as he (Chávez) does not do that, I think he should subject to criticisms," the US ruler stressed. "This is very important for leaders in the hemisphere, quite apart from the fact that they agree or disagree with the United States," Bush asserted.

    Chávez usually lashes out at Bush. Last March 19th, the Venezuelan ruler called his US counterpart "a donkey, coward and alcoholic," among other expressions. "The world is against you; the world is opposed to an imperialist, immoral, and genocidal war. You are insane and coward," Chávez said on March 19th during his weekly radio and TV show in reference to Bush.  He called the President a "coward" over his handling of the Iraq war. "Come here, Mr Danger, you are a coward, murderer, genocidal, alcoholic, drunk, immoral -- you are the worst, Mr Danger, you are sick, and I know so personally," Chávez said.

HUGO CHÁVEZ DENOUNCES U.S. "DICTATORSHIP" IN THE UNITED NATIONS

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Hugo Chávez claimed that the United States is conducting a "dictatorship" in the United Nations, and urged his new ambassador to the international organization, Francisco Arias Cárdenas, to fight such unfair regime. Chávez forecast that in the short term the world would contend US hegemony in the international arena.

    Chávez' remarks came late Tuesday, when he swore in Arias Cárdenas, the Venezuelan ambassador to Bolivia Julio Montes and the Communication and Information minister William Lara.  The Venezuelan ruler added that any country purporting to embrace a process of transformation should oppose Washington. He accused US officials of plotting to provoke political turmoil in Venezuela in order to disturb December 3rd presidential election.

    "Very soon, we the peoples, the nations are to break this schema that has been imposed in the United Nations. In this way, nations will be truly free, and the dictatorship against most nations and the world will be overthrown," Chávez said.

CUBA BUYING MORE RUSSIAN JETS

    HAVANA, CUBA.- Cuba`s flagship airline will buy five more Russian jets, with PS90A engines, the newest engines available. Cubana de Aviacion will buy two Il-96-300s, two Tu-205-100s and a Tu-204S, Novosti said Monday. The PS90A engine being installed on all five jets is made by Permskiye Motory, which is based in Perm.

    The Cuban carrier has already bought two Il-96-300s powered with PS90A engines as part of a contract between Russian leasing company Ilyushin Finance Co. and Cuba`s state-owned Aviaimport SA

03 - 29 - 06

ANDY CARD RESIGNS AS WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF, HE IS REPLACED BY BUDGET DIRECTOR JOSHUA BOLTEN

       WASHINGTON, D.C.- White House chief of staff Andy Card has resigned and will be replaced by budget director Joshua Bolten, President Bush announced Tuesday amid growing calls for a White House shakeup and Republican concern about Bush's tumbling poll ratings. Bush announced the changes in an nationally broadcast appearance in the Oval Office. "I have relied on Andy's wise counsel, his calm in crisis, his absolute integrity and his tireless commitment to public service," Bush said. "The next three years will demand much of those who serve our country. We have a global war to fight and win."

     Card stood stoically with his hands by his sides as Bush lauded his years of service through the Sept. 11 attacks, war and legislative and economic challenges. Gripping the podium, Card said in his farewell: "You're a good man, Mr. President." Card's eyes were watery. Card said he looks forward to just being Bush's friend. Bush then gave him five quick slaps on the back and the two walked out of the Oval Office together.

    The president called Bolten a man with broad experience, both on Wall Street and in Washington, including the last three years as director of the Office of Management and Budget. "Josh is a creative policy thinker," Bush said. "He is an expert on the budget and our economy. He is a man of candor and humor and directness. No person is better prepared for this important position." "I'm deeply honored now by the opportunity to succeed Andy Card as White House chief of staff," Bolten responded. "I said, 'Succeed Andy Card, not replace him,' because he cannot be replaced."

VENEZUELA FREES DOMINICAN WANTED BY UNITED STATES ON DRUG TRAFFICKING CHARGES

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuela has freed a Dominican drug suspect identified by Washington as a priority drug-trafficking target, saying U.S. authorities would not agree to its terms for his extradition. Judge Hector Coronado Flores dismissed a previous court order to extradite Mateo Holguin Ovalle and ruled that he be released, the Supreme Court said Monday in a statement on its Web site.

    The decision derails a case cited earlier by U.S. officials as a prime example of cooperation with Venezuela in the drug war. But the two countries are now locked in a dispute over how to resume joint counter-trafficking efforts paralyzed since last year. In February 2004, the court had authorized Holguin Ovalle to be handed over to U.S. authorities on condition they guarantee that he would not be sentenced to more than 30 years in prison.

    Venezuela's constitution prohibits the extradition of drug suspects if they could be sentenced to death or more than 30 years in jail. "Since the term of punishment to be imposed on Mateo Juan Holguin Ovalle could not be guaranteed, the extradition ordered cannot be carried out," Coronado Flores said in his sentence. Court officials confirmed that the Dominican had been freed, though they said they did not know the date of his release. U.S. authorities allege he headed a major drug ring that trafficked cocaine and heroine across South America and the Caribbean into the United States.

FAA DECISION ON VENEZUELAN FLIGHTS TO BE MADE IN WASHINGTON

    CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- A commission composed of five representatives of the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) met with Francisco Paz Fleitas, the head of the Venezuelan National Civil Aeronautic Institute (INAC,) to review the structure of the organization and analyze the audit conducted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO.) Mike Daniel, the manager of FAA International Programs, Procedures and Regulations Division, explained that the purpose of the visit to Venezuela was to confirm the progress made in civil aeronautic since 1995, when FAA downgraded Venezuela to Category 2.

    The FAA mission clarified that the final decision on any upgrade of Venezuela's certification will be made in Washington. "Part of the team will make work reports, which will be sent to Washington for a final summary." The visit of US authorities will continue up to the end of this current week. On Tuesday, they plan to go to Maiquetía international airport to check streamlining. Also, they will review the operations of any Venezuelan airline flying to the United States in order to prove the appropriate use of flight licenses, crew and other safety standards.

    "We will review and work based on ICAO standards, Appendices 1, 6 and 8, containing recommendations for operators and civilian authorities. Additionally, we will review critical issues in terms of air safety, including INAC structure, rules and regulations, training and monitoring of the inspectors' staff who supervise airlines and operators in Venezuela."

03 - 28 - 06

STATEMENT BY CONGRESSMAN LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART REGARDING "MR. MAS' LETTER TO PRESIDENT BUSH"

       MIAMI, FLORIDA.-Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL) issued the following statement today with regard to the "letter to President Bush" that Mr. Jorge Mas Santos and his organization are paying to have published in various newspapers: "My phone number is in the telephone book and they would have saved themselves some confusion if they had called me.  I have never said that I would support unilateral changes to the Helms-Burton law, nor that I would accept a provisional government led by any of the Castro brothers. I have fought intensely throughout the years against any changes to the Helms-Burton law and will continue to do so, including many much smaller changes than those.

    Perhaps it would have been useful if they had called me, for they are taking as fact incorrect assertions in the press that have distorted my positions. Precisely the reason for which I insist upon the return of sovereignty to the Cuban people through multiparty elections, is so that no transitional government that continues the dictatorship can be acceptable, led either by the Castro brothers, Alarcón, Colomé Ibarra, Ramiro Valdés, etc. To me there is no difference between any of them. None of them has nor would have any legitimacy. The only legitimate government would be one that is the result of free and multiparty elections.

    I do not disagree with the positions on Helms-Burton in this letter by Mr. Mas. What is unfortunate is that he insinuates that our community is divided, when it is not. He could have prevented that insinuation with a simple telephone call. The saddest part of this is that Mr. Mas and his group spend large amounts of money to divide our community instead of trying to help us fight the dictatorship."

HUGO CHAVEZ SAYS VENEZUELA MILITARY MUST BE READY FOR 'WAR OF RESISTANCE' AGAINST THE UNITED STATES

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Hugo Chavez on Sunday said he wants to update military training methods to prepare for a "war of resistance" against U.S. troops. He said Venezuela's military has begun instilling in soldiers the concept of "asymmetric war" - in which guerrilla tactics like hit-and-run attacks are used to counter a stronger military force. "It's our responsibility to prepare ourselves for a war of resistance," Chavez said during his weekly broadcast.

    The U.S. government has repeatedly denied Chavez's claims that it is considering a military attack to oust him. But Chavez warned U.S. President George W. Bush not to try it. "He would totally bite the dust," Chavez said. "We are prepared to defend this land whatever it takes." Chavez said Venezuela's military no longer has use for its old strategic manuals dating to World War II.

    Chavez recalled how his close ally Fidel Castro of Cuba personally led troops that routed a CIA-trained force at the Bay of Pigs in 1961. "Fidel Castro is a master of the war of resistance," Chavez said. Chavez said Venezuela now has three recently bought Russian-made attack helicopters up and running - the first to arrive in deals with Russia for 15 helicopters. The military also expects to receive 33,000 new rifles from Russia in May, out of a total deal for 100,000 Kalashnikovs, Defense Minister Orlando Maniglia said during the program.

LOUIS FARRAKHAN WANTS U.S. TO LEARN FROM CUBA DISASTER PLANS, CALLS EMBARGO 'WICKED'

    HAVANA, CUBA.- Nation of Islam minister Louis Farrakhan called the U.S. embargo against Cuba "wicked" and said Monday that American officials could learn much by studying the communist country's disaster preparedness plans. "We learned how they organize the people house by house, block by block," Farrakhan told international reporters of how Cuba painstakingly plans for hurricanes and other natural disasters. "They know every person in that community."

    Farrakhan arrived in Cuba on March 20 with a delegation of ministers and others from the religious organization and met with American students - mostly from disadvantaged black and Hispanic families - who are studying on full scholarships at Cuba's Latin American School of Medicine. During the trip, which was mostly closed to international media, Farrakhan and his group reportedly met with high-ranking Cuban officials and visited schools, as well as health and cultural programs.

    As of Monday afternoon, the group had not met with President Fidel Castro, Farrakhan said. It was unclear when the group would return to the United States. The Nation of Islam leader said delegation members were impressed by what they saw during the trip, especially by how Cubans have held up under more than four decades of American trade sanctions. "Our government, with its enormous power (uses) its wicked blockade to punish the Cuban people for daring to believe differently ... in hopes that they would rise up against their own leaders," said Farrakhan.

HUGO CHAVEZ WILLING TO BACK OFF US AIRLINE BAN TEMPORARILY

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuela said Monday it was willing to temporarily back off a March 30 ban on U.S. airlines as aviation officials discuss Caracas' demands that U.S. authorities drop restrictions against its carriers and upgrade its safety ranking. A delegation from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration arrived Sunday in the hopes of reaching an agreement with Venezuelan officials to avert a potential airline crisis if Venezuela follows through on its threat to block almost all flights by U.S. carriers.

    "Our government has shown and maintains its disposition to temporarily suspend the measure depending on the climate of the talks," said Infrastructure Minister Ramon Carrizalez. Carrizales said the government had expressed its willingness to hold off on the ban in response to the FAA's "gesture of good faith" to come to Venezuela and discuss the matter.

     The FAA delegation was set to meet with Venezuela's National Aviation Institute, or INAC, later Monday - the first of a series of technical meetings this week, officials said. Venezuela is demanding the FAA lift safety restrictions in place since 1995 that prevent Venezuelan airlines from flying to the U.S. using their own planes or from starting new services. Venezuela's proposed ban would prohibit all flights by Houston-based Continental Airlines Inc. (CAL) and Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL), and restrict most flights by Fort Worth, Texas-based AMR Corp.'s (AMR) American Airlines.

03 - 27 - 06

CARACAS ARCHBISHOP JORGE UROSA ORDAINED CARDINAL

       VATICAN CITY.- Caracas Archbishop Jorge Liberato Urosa Savino Friday was ordained as the fifth Venezuelan Cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI. The new Venezuelan Cardinal smiled while he received his Cardinal cap and skullcap from the Pope.

    Earlier, Cardinal Urosa Savino, through El Universal, gave his blessings to his fellow Venezuelan nationals, stressing the need to "work together for progress, for inclusion of everyone without discrimination, for human rights, for social co-existence, justice, fraternity, freedom and peace." Pope Benedict XVI ordained 15 new cardinals in Saint Peter's Square in Vatican City. He delivered homily before the new cardinals and thousand churchgoers.

    The ceremony started at 10:30 a.m. (Vatican time.)  At 4:00 p.m. (Vatican time) Cardinal Urosa Savino is to meet with his relatives and friends at the Blessings Hall in the Vatican. This is his last activity scheduled for Friday, but salutations are likely to extend until late Friday, as a large number of Venezuelans traveled to Rome to attend his ordination.

MEXICO FINES US-OWNED HOTEL THAT EXPELLED CUBAN GUESTS

       MEXICO CITY, MEXICO.- A U.S.-owned hotel that expelled Cuban guests under pressure from the Treasury Department must pay $112,000 in fines for violating Mexican commerce law, the Mexican government said Friday. The Sheraton Maria Isabel Hotel, in Mexico City's historic center, kicked out 16 Cuban officials attending a Feb. 2 meeting with U.S. oil executives after receiving a warning from the Treasury Department that it was in danger of violating a four-decade trade embargo against the regime of Cuban President Fidel Castro.

    Mexico's Foreign Relations Department said the hotel violated national commerce laws, which bar companies from discriminating against customers because of their nationality. Officials at the New York-based Starwood Hotels & Resorts Inc. (HOT), which owns the hotel, did not return calls placed after hours Friday.

03 - 26 - 06

RUSSIANS HELPED SADDAM HUSSEIN PENTAGON STUDY SAYS

       WASHINGTON, D.C.- Russian officials collected intelligence on U.S. troop movements and attack plans from inside the American military command leading the 2003 invasion of Iraq and passed that information to Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, according to a U.S. military study released yesterday.

    The intelligence reports, which the study said were provided to Hussein through the Russian ambassador in Baghdad at the height of the U.S. assault, warned accurately that American formations intended to bypass Iraqi cities on their thrust toward Baghdad. The reports provided some specific numbers on U.S. troops, units and locations, according to Iraqi documents dated March and April 2003 and later captured by the United States.

    The study gives no indication who the alleged sources inside the U.S. Central Command might have been, or whether American officials believe the Kremlin authorized the transfer of information to Hussein's government. The U.S. military and defense officials who released the study said the revelations about Russia in the captured documents came as a surprise. They said they believe the captured Iraqi documents are authentic.  

RUSSIA DENIES GIVING INTELLIGENCE TO SADDAM HUSSEIN

       MOSCOW, RUSSIA.- Russia's foreign spy agency denied Saturday that Moscow gave Saddam Hussein information on U.S. troop movements and plans during the invasion of Iraq, while analysts speculated the Pentagon claim was tied to a growing rift between the West and the Kremlin. A Pentagon report Friday cited two captured Iraqi documents as saying Russia obtained information from sources "inside the American Central Command" in Qatar and passed battlefield intelligence to Saddam through the former Russian ambassador in Baghdad, Vladimir Titorenko.

    The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service dismissed the claims. "Similar, baseless accusations concerning Russia's intelligence have been made more than once," agency spokesman Boris Labusov said. "We don't consider it necessary to comment on such fabrications." Yevgenia Albats, a Moscow-based journalist who specializes in intelligence matters, said she suspected there was "at least a certain truth reflected in the Pentagon report," considering Russia's close relationship with the ousted Iraqi leader.

    A leading Russian Internet news agency, Gazeta.ru, speculated the Pentagon report was released to affect the U.N. Security Council debate on what to do about Iran's nuclear program as Russia and China are resisting U.S. and European demands for a tough stand. "The leak about Russian spies in Doha can be interpreted as pressure on Moscow, which has taken a tough, principled position on the Iranian nuclear question," it said. Sergei Oznobishchev, head of the Institute of Strategic Evaluations and Analyses, also tied the report to increasing U.S. distrust for Russia.

03 - 25 - 06

mEXICO RULES OUT POOR RELATIONS WITH VENEZUELA

       MEXICO CITY, MEXICO.- The Mexican Government downplayed Friday the possibility of worsening relations with Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, accused of intervening in the electoral process. "There is no fear that relations will be affected by these events," Rubén Aguilar, the speaker of President Vicente Fox, said during a press conference, Efe reported. The Foreign Ministers of both countries have stated that "relations go smoothly and works continue on the possibility of solving the problem that emerged months ago," he explained.

    Fox's conservative Partido Acción Nacional (PAN) claimed that Chávez is intervening in the elections for president next July 2nd and supporting leftist Andrés López Obrador, who is the frontrunner in the contest according to surveys on intention to vote. "The Mexican rightwing, by using lies, tries to curb the rise of the leftwing and its candidate López Obrador," President Chávez regretted last Tuesday. A TV spot paid by PAN shows President Chávez advising his Mexican counterpart not to pick a quarrel with him, otherwise, he will be nettled.

VENEZUELA WEIGHTS REPLY TO MEXICO

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- The Venezuelan Foreign Ministry is assessing the legal and diplomatic position that will take before Mexico following the use of the image of President Hugo Chávez in a TV spot paid by ruling Partido Acción Nacional (PAN,) Venezuelan Deputy Chief of Mission Néstor González reported. The TV spot uses the image of President Chávez during a speech, where he advised his Mexican counterpart Vicente Fox not to pick a quarrel with him. Later, the spot shows leftwing candidate López Obrador telling Fox, "shut up, Mr. President!" AP reported.

    González does not want Mexico to use Venezuela for domestic politics and agreed with the speaker of President Fox, who is certain that the incident will not twist the knife in the wound of bilateral diplomatic relations. "It is true that Venezuela is a reference in some countries for the events experienced there, but the claims of intervention are a lie," González asserted. Mexican-Venezuelan relations came at a standstill last November 2005, when both countries recalled their ambassadors following Chávez's criticism of Fox. At the present time, relations are at the level of charges d'affaires.

03 - 24 - 06

U.s. ambassador stranded by CHAVISTAS' RAUCOUS rally

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- A raucous rally supporting leftist President Hugo Chavez stranded the U.S. ambassador and his delegation inside a social club for more than two hours Wednesday, officials said. About 200 chanting Chavez supporters burned an American flag, set tires ablaze and blocked the gates of the Italian-Venezuelan social club during the visit by Ambassador William Brownfield to San Juan de los Morros, about 50 miles southwest of Caracas, said U.S. Embassy spokesman Brian Penn.

    "It was loud, hostile and somewhat threatening. There were burning tires, loud firecrackers and obscene chants," Penn said. "They weren't about to move and the police weren't about to move them, so we were stuck." Gov. Eduardo Manuitt, a Chavez supporter, told Union Radio that protesters were simply demonstrating against the ambassador's presence, "asking for him to leave Guarico state - that's all."

     U.S. officials say Chavez has failed to commit himself to democratic principles and poses a threat to the region's stability. Chavez has repeatedly accused U.S. officials of trying to discredit his "revolutionary" government and orchestrate his ouster. American officials deny those allegations.

U.S. AMBASSADOR DEMANDS BETTER SECURITY FROM VENEZUELA AFTER CHAVISTAS' HOSTILE PROTEST

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- The U.S. ambassador called Thursday for better security from Venezuelan authorities a day after a hostile protest threatened him and his delegation during a trip outside the capital. U.S. Ambassador William Brownfield and his delegation were blocked from entering a social club Wednesday by supporters of President Hugo Chavez, who also burned a U.S. flag and set tires ablaze in the town of San Juan de los Morros, some 75 kilometers (50 miles) southwest of Caracas.

    "If their desire is intimidation lamentably they have failed because I will continue my efforts," Brownfield told Union Radio. "I don't want to provoke, I don't want confrontation every time I travel but at the same time I'm going to travel, and the government and I have to establish a system that works and permits me to travel and permits them to take the necessary security measures," he said.

    He urged those with any misgivings in the future to speak with him directly, saying he would welcome dialogue over such protests. Brownfield said the crowd outside the Italian-Venezuelan social club never physically attacked the delegation, but it took police four hours to arrive and calm the situation. U.S. Embassy spokesman Brian Penn said earlier there appeared to have been "official involvement" in the protest with some wearing the credentials of state employees. Brownfield noted Thursday that many protesters arrived in buses and the governor's office sent lunches, but refused to elaborate, saying he did not want to speculate.

ANTI-GOVERNMENT SIGNS PROMPT DISPATCH OF POLICE IN HAVANA

       HAVANA, CUBA.- Some 20 policemen swarmed over two blocks of San Francisco Street in Havana's Lawton district last Saturday when 11 signs reading "Down with Fidel" and "Fidel dictator" appeared on walls. The policemen arrived in four cruisers, four trucks and various motorcycles. They set up a temporary post at the Pestalozzi primary school and took pictures of the home-made signs.

    When such signs appear, the police undertake an investigation and then call in painters to paint them over. The signs appeared a day after Castro called for a demonstration outside the U.S. Interests Section in Havana to protest the appearance of a "Down with Fidel" sign at a World Classic baseball game in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

CUBANS UPSET BECAUSE OLD U.S. REFRIGERATORS MUST BE CHANGED FOR NEW CHINESE MODELS

       HAVANA, CUBA.- Residents owning old American-made refrigerators must trade them in for new Chinese models. El dictador cubano Fidel Castro issued the order last year as a means of cutting the consumption of electricity, the Chinese models presumably being more efficient than the old U.S. ones. However, some residents say the old models work better. "I have a 1951 refrigerator that works like it did on the first day and I don't plan to change it," said one resident.

    The government made a house-to-house census of refrigerators to get an estimate of how many Chinese models would be needed.

03 - 23 - 06

CUBAN EXILE LUIS POSADA CARRILES DENIED RELEASE

       MIAMI, FLORIDA.- The U.S. government will not free Cuban exile militant Luis Posada Carriles, who has been detained in a federal immigration facility since May, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The government's decision was made public today, about a week shy of a 180-day deadline for deciding his custody status.

    ''Following a routine custody review, as required by regulation, ICE has issued Mr. Posada an Interim Decision to Continue Detention,'' ICE said in a written statement. “This letter advises Mr. Posada that his custody status has been reviewed, and it has been determined that he will not be released from the custody of ICE at this time. This interim decision is based on a review of Mr. Posada's case and consideration of the information Mr. Posada and his attorney submitted to ICE's reviewing officials.'

    Posada's lawyer, Eduardo Soto, told the Herald late last week that he planned to appeal -- through a writ of habeas corpus -- if the government decided not to free his client. ICE left open the possibility that Posada could be freed at a later date and reiterated its intention to try to deport him to a country that is not Venezuela or Cuba.

PRISON INMATES NOT ALLOWED TO PRAY IN CUBA

       HAVANA, CUBA.- In a note smuggled out of Havana's Combinado del Este prison, inmate Augusto Guerra denounced that prison guards prevented him and others from holding a prayer meeting.

“This afternoon they suspended a prayer session for more than 15 inmates,” reads the note in part. Guerra is serving a two year sentence for “disobedience” as a result of having spoken ill of the government in public. For the year and a half that he's been incarcerated, he has refused to wear prison garb, and as punishment has been denied the right to have visitors.

HUGO CHAVEZ LASHES OUT AT FREE-TRADE PACTS

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuela agreed Monday to sell fuel under preferential terms to an El Salvador association created by a group of leftist mayors. It was not immediately clear what kind of fuel was covered by the agreement, but local Salvadoran officials said they hoped for diesel and gasoline. The Venezuelan state oil firm subsidiary PDV Caribe reached the agreement with the El Salvador association, formed by mayors belonging to the leftist Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front party.

    Under the agreement, cities headed by the FMLN will pay 60 percent of their oil bill within 90 days while paying for the rest in-kind through agricultural products and locally made goods, said Soyapango Mayor Carlos Ruiz. Hugo Chavez, whose country is a major world oil producer, has broadened his influence with generous oil deals to countries across Latin America and the Caribbean. The program has also extended to the United States where the leftist leader has shipped cheaper heating oil to low-income people in New York and Massachusetts via its company Citgo Petroleum Corp.

    Chavez, a frequent critic of U.S. policy, used Monday's signing occasion to criticize U.S.-backed free trade agreements such as the one El Salvador joined March 1.  "They're making deals with the devil, the devil himself," Chavez said. Salvadoran President Tony Saca criticized the oil deal and urged the FMLN not to try to generate "false hopes" among Salvadorans. The FMLN, once backed by Cuba and the Soviet Union, battled conservative U.S.-backed governments until a peace treaty in 1992, when the FMLN transformed itself into a political party.

03 - 22 - 06

JAPAN ENDS CUBA'S RUN IN THE WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC

       SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA.- Cuba wasn't supposed to be here Monday. Not in the World Baseball Classic and especially not in the tournament's final. However, when the curtain finally came down on the WBC Monday night, Cuba lost the championship game 10-6 to Japan. Team that trailed 6-1 halfway into the final before clawing back and nearly stealing the championship.

    The last time Cuba failed to make it to the final of a major international tournament was 1951, when it was third in the World Cup. In Havana, thousands of people gathered in the city's Parque Central -- where fans meet every morning for large and passionate baseball discussions -- to watch the title game on a huge television screen.

    In Japan, where Saturday's semifinal victory over Korea drew as many as half of all TV viewers at times, the championship game started just after 11 a.m. Tuesday morning, forcing fans to follow the action from their offices. The Cubans started 38-year-old right-hander Ormari Romero, who pitched Cuba into the semifinals by beating Puerto Rico. He lasted just four batters this time, though, giving up two infield singles and a walk to the first four batters. Japan blew the game open with four runs in the ninth, one on an Ichiro single, two more on a single by pinch-hitter Kosuke Fukudome and the last on a sacrifice fly by Michiro Ogasawara, who had a game-high three RBI.

LOUIS FARRAKHAN TRAVELS TO CUBA "TO LEARN ABOUT ISLAND'S DISASTER PREPAREDNESS"

       HAVANA, CUBA.- Nation of Islam minister Louis Farrakhan arrived in Cuba Monday for a weeklong trip “to learn about the island and its highly organized disaster preparedness programs.” "We feel that we should make our people as prepared as we can be for any natural disaster that may afflict our communities," Farrakhan said during a meeting with the dozens of American students at Cuba's Latin American School of Medicine.

    "We are here to try to get as much knowledge as we can and spread it throughout the black and Hispanic, Native American and the poor communities of America who suffer the most," the minister said. There are 82 Americans studying with full scholarships at the medical school, which the communist government built to provide free medical training to young people from modest means from throughout the Western Hemisphere.

    During the gathering, Farrakahn thanked Cuban officials for offering to send a group of doctors to New Orleans to help provide medical care to the victims of Hurricane Katrina last year. U.S. officials never formally rejected the offer, but said that more doctors were not needed and the Cuban doctors never went. Farrakahn was met at the airport by parliament speaker Ricardo Alarcon, a senior official in Fidel Castro's government, and is to meet with Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque on Tuesday afternoon.

CUBA CALLS US ACCUSATION AGAINST ITS DIPLOMAT IN COLOMBIA "A COARSE LIE"

       HAVANA, CUBA.- Cuba Tuesday rejected as "disgusting lie" US claims that Cuban ambassador to Colombia José Antonio Pérez Novoa is conducting secret operations in favor of Venezuela and Bolivia. Official newspaper Granma published a communiqué from the Cuban Foreign Affairs Ministry rejecting "every one of the lies" Colombian magazine Cambio published last March 18th in a report accusing the Cuban diplomat of "working to articulate spying networks."

     "The Foreign Affairs Ministry reiterates it deems the mentioned report in Cambio magazine a coarse and disgusting lie, and urges the US government and its agents to produce at least one piece of evidence to demonstrate their deceptive accusations."

    Cambio published a report prepared by US officials and delivered to Colombian authorities. The document ensured that there was a plan to "set in Colombia a strong network supporting the axis that comprises Hugo Chávez in Venezuela and newly inaugurated Bolivian President Evo Morales. According to the Cuban Foreign Ministry, "lies and war are the major instruments in the US imperial foreign policy," DPA reported.

03 - 21 - 06

HUGO CHAVEZ INSULTS PRESIDENT BUSH

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez flung fresh insults at his United States counterpart George Bush on Sunday, calling him a "coward" over his handling of the Iraq war. "Come here, Mr Danger, you are a coward, murderer, genocidal, alcoholic, drunk, immoral -- you are the worst, Mr Danger, you are sick, and I know so personally," Chávez said during his Sunday television programme, Hello, President, which has become increasingly a forum for his views on US foreign policy.

    "You are a coward because you did not go to Iraq to lead your armed forces. It is very easy to command them from afar. If it occurs to you one day to invade Venezuela, I will be here waiting for you on the savanna, Mr Danger," said Chávez, a former paratrooper. Chávez also blasted Bush over the White House's annual National Security Strategy, released last week, which called the leftist leader a "demagogue awash in oil money" who is "undermining democracy and seeking to destabilise the region.

    "Mr Danger, George W Bush, you are a donkey," Chávez said. Venezuela is one of the largest suppliers of oil to the United States. Chávez also pointed out that disapproval of Bush's handling of Iraq hit a new low last week of 65%, according to a Newsweek poll. "You are killing children who are not to blame for your illnesses, for your complexes, kid. Your soldiers are bombing cities. Yesterday we saw images of five murdered children," Chávez said. - Sapa-AFP

UNITED STATES CLAIMS THAT CUBA IS SPYING IN COLOMBIA FOR CUBA AND CHAVEZ

       WASHINGTON, D.C.- The United States claimed that Cuban ambassador to Colombia José Antonio Pérez Novoa is developing a "secret agenda" in Bogotá for the governments of Venezuela and Bolivia, magazine Cambio said in a report. The weekly publication ensured that, for Washington, Pérez Novoa is working to "articulate spying networks and seeking to create commandos supporting both Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez," and his axis with Bolivian President Evo Morales, Efe reported.

    The claims came in a document the US Central Intelligence (CIA) prepared. The US State Department in Washington forwarded the report to Colombian President Álvaro Uribe's government through the US ambassador in Bogotá William Wood. Uribe's government received the document and discussed it last March 14th during a regular meeting attended by Defense minister Camilo Ospina, and senior military officers, Cambio said.

CLOSED VENEZUELAN HIGHWAY BRIDGE  COLLAPSED, NO INJURIES REPORTED

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- A deteriorating Venezuelan bridge that was closed in January because of safety concerns collapsed on Sunday, officials said. There were no injuries. The bridge, on a highway linking Venezuela's capital of Caracas with the country's main international airport, was closed by authorities on Jan. 5 when cracks appeared in it due to shifting mountain slopes.

    Last month officials inaugurated a freshly paved 2.4-kilometer (1.5-mile) route bypassing the bridge, ending a two-month transportation crisis. President Hugo Chavez rejected criticism on Sunday that his government's neglect of the country's infrastructure was to blame for the bridge collapse. He said important maintenance work had not been done on the structure for over 50 years. "We were going to have to blow it up anyway," he said.

    Government critics, however, argued the bridge could have been saved but wasn't sufficiently maintained. They called for the resignation of Infrastructure Minister Ramon Carrizalez. "If the minister has a little bit of dignity, he should step down immediately," said Roberto Smith, an opposition leader who plans to compete against Chavez in December's presidential election

03 - 20 - 06

PERU PRESIDENTIAL POLL SHOWS NATIONALIST EX-ARMY OFFICER'S RISE IN PRESIDENTIAL POLL  

       LIMA, PERU.--A left-leaning retired army officer has pulled into a statistical tie with a pro-business former congresswoman a month ahead of Peru's presidential election, according to a poll released Monday. The polling firm Apoyo showed Ollanta Humala with 30 percent and Lourdes Flores 31 percent of voter preference.

    Humala, 43, who admires Venezuela's leftist President Hugo Chavez, has promised heavy state intervention in Peru's free-market economy. He has worried Washington because he opposes the U.S.-financed eradication of Peru's coca crop, the raw material for cocaine. The national survey showed support for Flores, 46, falling from from 33 percent in late February and 37 percent in late January, her highest point. Humala climbed four percentage points from late February.

    Former President Alan Garcia, 56, a center-left populist whose 1985-1990 government left the economy in shambles, was third with 22 percent. No other candidate in the field of 20 had more than 5 percent. The poll surveyed 2,000 voters March 8-10 and had a margin of error of 2.2 percentage points. If no candidate wins a majority in the April 9 election, a runoff will be held. The poll showed Flores defeating Humala by 54 percent to 46 percent in that contest. An Apoyo poll in late February had her defeating him 60 percent to 40 percent.

DOMINICANS PROTEST U.S. MILITARY PRESENCE IN THE ISLAND

       SANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC.-A few hundred Dominicans chanted "Yankees out!" and marched behind drummers and cheerleaders Saturday to protest what the U.S. military says is an aid program in the Caribbean country. Demonstrators paraded through the capital's colonial district to denounce the presence of U.S. soldiers in Barahona, a coastal city about 118 miles (190 kilometers) west of Santo Domingo.

    About 3,500 U.S. soldiers will pass through the Barahona area to build medical clinics and conduct training with Dominican forces as part of the U.S. military's "New Horizons" Latin American aid program that began in 1998, said U.S. Army spokesman Robert Appin. Still, protesters claim U.S. soldiers were being stationed in the country to build a permanent U.S. base near the Haitian border. They carried signs reading, "Not one Yankee more in Barahona."

    "They want to stay here to attack other countries," said Ana Suarez, 29, of Santo Domingo. Protesters burned a plastic U.S. flag outside a city park and made frequent references to the U.S. invasion of the Dominican Republic in 1965 that happened amid violence between backers of then populist President Juan Bosch and conservative foes who accused him of being a communist. Other "New Horizons" projects were scheduled this year in Honduras, Peru and El Salvador.

03 - 19 - 06

 MIAMI FEDERAL JUDGE SIGNS OFF ON VISAS IN BRIDGE REPATRIATION CASE 

       MIAMI, FLORIDA.-  A Miami federal judge has agreed to a new deal between the U.S. government and the legal team for 14 repatriated Cubans so they can return to the United States in the wake of their disputed January landing on an old Florida Keys bridge. U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno issued his decision late Thursday, but it remains up to Cuban leader Fidel Castro to decide whether to allow the migrants to leave the island.

    The agreement -- citing ''the humanitarian value'' of resolving the dispute promptly -- requires the federal government to issue U.S. visas to the Cubans. But one migrant who made the journey, Lazaro Jesus Martinez Jimenez, won't be granted a visa because he has a criminal history. In February, Moreno ordered the U.S. government to make arrangements for the repatriated Cubans to be brought back to the United States after the judge ruled they landed on U.S. soil when they reached an abandoned bridge in the Florida Keys.

    The judge found the Cubans ''were removed to Cuba illegally'' in January after the U.S. Coast Guard wrongly concluded the old Seven Mile Bridge was not connected to the United States. Moreno's decision marked the first time the government had been ordered to allow Cubans into the United States after they'd been repatriated to Cuba under the ''wet-foot, dry-foot'' immigration policy. Moreno had given the government a March 30 deadline to consider the Cubans' eligibility to obtain the appropriate federal documents to enter the United States. But Castro remained the wild card.

03 - 18 - 06

UNITED STATES LAUNCHED LARGE AIR ASSAULT AGAINST IRAQ TERRORISTS

       BAGHDAD, IRAQ.- U.S. forces and Iraqi troops launched what the military described as the largest air assault since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion Thursday, targeting insurgent strongholds north of the capital. The U.S. military said the raid, dubbed Operation Swarmer, was aimed at clearing "a suspected insurgent operating area" northeast of Samarra and was expected to last several days. The Pentagon said 41 people were arrested but it was not clear if suspected insurgents put up any resistance. "More than 1,500 Iraqi and coalition troops, over 200 tactical vehicles, and more than 50 aircraft participated in the operation," the military statement said.

03 - 17 - 06

URUGUAY TO JOIN SOUTHERN GAS PIPELINE  

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- "Not only are we willing to take part in this project, but if we were left aside, a scandal would hit my country," said Wednesday Uruguayan President Tabaré Vásquez when asked if his country was to join a planned southern gas pipeline comprising Argentina, Brazil, and Venezuela.

    During a press conference in the presidential palace of Miraflores in Caracas, Venezuela, where he paid an official visit on March 15-16, Tabaré said Uruguay would join the energy project for the sake of regional integration. This gas pipeline stretches over more than 7,000 km from Güiria, in eastern Sucre state, and is expected to supply gas to South American countries. He explained that Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia are also considering a gas pipeline that is to link the three nations to feed electric powerhouses.

CHINA HAS NO INFORMATION ON  VENEZUELAN PLANS TO PURCHASE WEAPONS

       PEKING, CHINA.-The Chinese government has no information on Venezuelan plans to purchase weapons from China, as the chief of the US Southern Command General Bantz Craddock recently claimed, the Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry told Efe. "We do not know any Venezuelan plan to increase purchases of arms," the Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry's spokesman said in a brief communiqué responding to allegations that Caracas is making moves to buy weapons from China.

    Last Tuesday, Craddock said President Hugo Chávez' government was a "destabilizing force" because of the country's foreign policy and its weapon buildup plan. Beijing on Thursday recalled that Chinese defense cooperation with Latin American countries is normal, and it does not entail any danger for third nations. They were responding to US State Secretary Condoleezza Rice's concerns about China steps towards re-equipment with weapons.

03 - 16 - 06

03 - 15 - 06

VENEZUELAN DIPLOMAT SAYS LACK OF CHAVEZ-RICE EXCHANGE SHOWS 'REGRETTABLE' STATE OF RELATIONS

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuela's foreign minister said Monday said the lack of a greeting between U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez when both attended the inauguration of Chile's new president showed the "regrettable" state of U.S.-Venezuelan relations.

    Chavez, a fierce critic of the U.S. government, has called Rice the "Imperial Lady" and has suggested she come to Venezuela and learn to read through a government literacy program. The two were seated far apart during Saturday's inauguration of new Chilean President Michelle Bachelet. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Ali Rodriguez said on state television that the lack of any greeting between Chavez and Rice was a reflection of the state of U.S.-Venezuelan relations.

    "Venezuela has excellent relations will all of the countries in the world, with the regrettable exception of the United States," Rodriguez said, according to a statement. He spoke by telephone from Cuba, where he is recovering from knee surgery. Nevertheless, Rodriguez said Venezuela plans to make its best effort to improve relations with the U.S. "Venezuela will always make its best effort to normalize relations with the United States, but it doesn't depend on Venezuela for that to occur," Rodriguez said. "The great empire has tried to impose its conditions and its political schemes on the country."

DICTATOR FIDEL CASTRO IS WITHHOLDING EXIT VISAS FOR 553 CUBANS

       WASHINGTON, D.C.- The Cuban government is withholding exit permits for 533 Cubans who have received visas to emigrate to the United States, according to data from the U.S. Interests Section in Havana. The number includes 303 Cubans with U.S. visas and 230 people who have been claimed by relatives in the United States, the U.S. diplomatic mission's figures showed.  

     In the majority of cases, the exit permits have been withheld because the people involved are senior government or military officials who are viewed as defectors. More than 100 involve health professionals who can be required to work for the government several years to pay for their educations. Unlike most countries, Cuba requires its citizens to obtain exit permits when leaving the country, both on short visits abroad or as permanent migrants. Some of those held up have been waiting more than 10 years for the permit.

    The U.S. State Department's annual human rights report, released last week, mentioned Cuba's departure restrictions. ''Although the government allows the departure of people classified as immigrants or who have refugee status in other countries, thousands of citizens who received documents to travel abroad were denied authorization to leave last year,'' the report said. The report added that the majority of those affected are doctors, nurses and other health professionals, as well as youths of military service age and political dissidents.

03 - 14 - 06

HUGO CHAVEZ'S DECISION TO RESTRICT FLIGHTS TO THE UNITED STATES STILL EFFECTIVE

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Representatives of the civil aeronautic sector in Venezuela and the United States expect that this will be a decisive week to solve the dispute of both countries since 1995. Humberto Figuera, the vice-president of the Venezuelan Airlines Association, commented that in view of the willingness expressed by the Venezuelan and US governments, a solution could be reached before implementing the decision of the National Civil Aviation Institute to discontinue the flights of US airliners from March 30th.

    Víctor Battini, the director general of Delta Airlines for South America and Mexico, considers also a possible prompt solution, particularly if the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) decides to visit Venezuela to check air terminals and safety and upgrade Venezuela to Category 1. All representatives expect the visit this same week. Therefore, FAA could have an updated view of the progress made in Venezuela in terms of civil aviation.

     Experts in the aeronautic sector explained that since 1995, when FAA resolved to downgrade Venezuela to Category 2, much progress has been made in the area of safety and aircraft certification. He argued, Venezuela resolved to discontinue the flights of US airliners from March 30th, as reciprocity in the face of lack of balance in compliance with the aviation bilateral agreement. Now, airlines expect FAA and the National Civil Aeronautic Institute to reach an agreement; solve the impasse and prevent cessation of US flights to and from Venezuela.

03 - 13- 06

PRESIDENT ALVARO URIBE ALLIES HEADED FOR LANDSLIDE IN COLOMBIA

       BOGOTA, COLOMBIA.- Parties loyal to President Alvaro Uribe were headed toward a landslide victory Sunday in congressional elections that the government called the least violent in two decades. With 34 percent of all votes counted, supporters of Uribe's all-out war on leftist guerrillas looked poised to take 71 seats in Colombia's senate, the totality of whose 102 seats were up for grabs.  
 
     Uribe is up for reelection on May 28, having amended the constitution so he could seek a second consecutive term, which if successful would make him the first president to do so in more than a century. Leftist rebels, in an attempt to embarrass Uribe, had tried to disrupt voting and were blamed for the death of more than two dozen people in attacks across the nation's rural countryside in recent weeks.   But with 200,000 soldiers deployed at polling stations across the Andean nation, the voting was the safest in two decades, the interior minister said.
 
     The only incidents of violence reported were the burning of three buses in the capital and a car bombing in the northwest province of Choco. According to recent polls, Uribe is on track to easily cross a 50-percent threshold to win a second term and avoid a runoff with the next closest vote getter. Voting also took place in Colombia's 32 provinces to elect 166 representatives for the legislature's lower house.

VENEZUELAN VICE PRESIDENT JOSE VICENTE RANGEL SAYS COUNTRY MORE DEMOCRATIC THAN THE UNITED STATES

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuela's vice president said his country is more democratic than the United States - the latest jab in a series of pointed criticisms between the two governments. Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel made the remark Sunday when asked about a recent U.S. State Department report that criticized Venezuela's human rights record. He said Venezuela should be compared to the U.S. government.

    "Today, Venezuela is a much more democratic country," Rangel said. "It respects human rights more than the United States." Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has repeatedly called the United States a major violator of human rights, pointing to the war in Iraq and the U.S. prison holding terror suspects in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

    The State Department report issued last week cited concerns about freedom of expression, judicial independence and alleged harassment of the political opposition in Venezuela. U.S. officials have raised concerns about the health of democracy under Chavez, a close ally of Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Chavez, who is up for re-election this year, accuses the U.S. government of trying to oust democratically elected governments it disagrees with, including his own during a short-lived 2002 coup. U.S. officials denied involvement.

03 - 12- 06

IRAN THREATENS TO USE OIL AS A WEAPON IN NUKE IF UN IMPOSES SANCTIONS

     TEHRAN, IRAN.-Iran on Saturday explicitly warned for the first time that it could use oil as a weapon if the U.N. Security Council imposes sanctions over an Iranian nuclear program that the U.S. and others suspect is trying to produce atomic bombs. Later in the day, diplomats said Russia is pushing for a new round of international talks to be held away from U.N. headquarters, apparently hoping to head off a showdown in the council.

    Iranian Interior Minister Mostafa Pourmohammadi raised the possibility of using Iran's oil and natural gas supplies as a weapon in the international standoff and also noted Iran's strategic location at a chokepoint for a vital Persian Gulf oil route.  "If (they) politicize our nuclear case, we will use any means. We are rich in energy resources. We have control over the biggest and the most sensitive energy route of the world," Pourmohammadi was quoted as saying by the official Islamic Republic News Agency.

    Iran is the No. 2 producer in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries after Saudi Arabia. It also lies on one side of the narrow Strait of Hormuz, a key passage for most of the crude oil shipped from the Persian Gulf nations.  Pourmohammadi's statements were the most specific yet in a series of threats issued by Iranian officials as the Security Council discusses how to cajole Iran into reimposing a freeze on uranium enrichment and fully cooperating with a U.N. probe of its suspect nuclear program.

03 - 11- 06

HUGO CHAVEZ PONDERS ON MEETING WITH SECRETARY OF STATE CONDOLEEZZA RICE

     SANTIAGO DE CHILE, CHILE.- Hugo Chávez might meet in Chile with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Venezuelan Ambassador to Santiago Víctor Delgado said. Both Chávez and Rice will attend the inauguration of Chilean president-elect Michelle Bachelet next Saturday, Efe reported. "Human beings, open-minded and open-hearted, like President Chávez, do not have any problem. Let us remember that the last time he referred himself to Condoleezza, he sent her a kiss," Delgado claimed during a press conference.

    However, he noted that Chávez's stay in Chile would be only for a few hours. According to the ambassador, the president's agenda in Chile will be restricted to the inauguration to be held at 15:00 GMT in the port of Valparaíso, and a subsequent luncheon hosted by Bachelet. Chávez will travel to Chile along with five ministers, including Foreign Minister Alcides Rondón, the ambassador asserted.

03 - 10- 06

03 - 09 - 06

IRAN THREATENS THE UNITED STATES WITH "HARM AND PAIN"

       WASHINGTON, D.C.- The White House said on Wednesday Iran continued to move in the wrong direction and would be better served to make the decision to work with the international community. Washington is seeking international pressure to force Iran to stop its nuclear program, which U.S. officials believe is aimed at developing nuclear weapons. Iran says its program is for civilian purposes.

    Earlier Iran, the world's No. 4 oil provider, said it would review its oil export policy if the Security Council tackles its case. European Union countries said this was now inevitable as Tehran had flouted demands to prove its program was peaceful. Javad Vaeedi, the deputy head for international affairs of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, blamed the United States for closing the door on diplomatic solutions to the situation. "In this stage we are trying to avoid confrontation," Vaeedi said.

    He hinted that if Iran is subject to U.N. sanctions, it could cause problems for the United States. "The United States may have the power to cause harm and pain but it is also susceptible to harm and pain," Vaeedi said. "So if the United States wishes to choose that path let the ball roll." After weeks of talks and diplomatic maneuvering over the crisis, the international community Wednesday moved one step closer to taking action against Iran.

THE UNITED STATES CLAIMS OF HARASSMENT AND CORRUPTION IN VENEZUELA

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- "Politicization of the judiciary, restrictions on the media, and harassment of the political opposition continued to characterize the human rights situation during the year," the Department of State wrote in its 2005 country report. An annual report of the US State Department on human rights proclaimed Wednesday restrictions of freedom of the press in Venezuela, as well as corruption, harassment of the dissent and politicization of the judiciary.

    "Politicization of the judiciary, restrictions on the media, and harassment of the political opposition continued to characterize the human rights situation during the year," the Department of State wrote in its 2005 country report. Venezuela is the only Latin American country mentioned in the section on the nations where the civil society and independent media are assaulted, along with Cambodia, China, Zimbabwe, Bielarussia and Russia. "Assaults against the media declined compared with 2004," the authors acknowledged in the chapter dealing particularly with Venezuela.

    Additionally, the report noted "widespread corruption at all levels of government," and insisted on saying that the judicial system is "corrupt, inefficient, and highly politicized," characterized also "by trial delays, impunity, and violations of due process." Nor was the Venezuelan police free from the US criticism. "Corruption was a major problem among all police forces (…) Impunity for corruption, brutality, and other acts of violence were major problems." Additionally, the report emphasized, "security forces committed unlawful killings, including summary executions of criminal suspects, and mistreated persons in custody resulting in deaths."

03 - 08 - 06

REPATRIATED CUBANS APPLY TO LEAVE COUNTRY LEGALLY 

       HAVANA, CUBA.- Cuban migrants sent back to their homeland after reaching a section of an old bridge in the Keys are now applying to leave Cuba legally. Cuban migrants who reached an abandoned bridge in the Florida Keys only to be sent home began a new effort to reach the United States: filling out paperwork Monday at the American mission in Havana.

    Under U.S. migration policies, Cubans who reach U.S. soil are generally allowed to stay, while those stopped at sea usually are sent back. The migrants reached an old bridge that the U.S. government said didn't count as dry land because chunks are missing and it no longer connects to U.S. soil.U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno in Miami last week ordered U.S. federal officials to ''use their best efforts'' to help the Cubans return to the United States. Moreno wrote that ``those Cuban refugees who reached American soil in early January 2006 were removed to Cuba illegally.''

     But there was no guarantee that the Cuban government would let them go back. Cuba requires its citizens to get special government permission to leave. ''We stepped on American soil, we shouldn't be here,'' Ernesto Hernández told reporters after meeting with consular officials at the U.S. Interests Section in Havana and starting the paperwork that the migrants hope will let them go to the United States for good. The group includes two children, ages 2 and 13, who were traveling by sea with their parents.

FIVE-YEAR CONVICTION OF GENERAL ALFONZO MARTINEZ RATIFIED

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- An appeal in cassation on the case of General Carlos Alfonzo Martínez has been overruled, with a five-year sentence to prison being kept, attorney Alberto Arteaga said. Arteaga explained that the decision backs the judgment of the Court of Appeals and confirms the punishment for violation of the security area by General Martínez in December 2002.

The defense attorney stressed that the official is the first person condemned for such a crime, even when he was engaged in a peaceful activity. In his opinion, conditional suspension should apply because the sentence does not exceed five years. General Martínez regarded the decision as unfair.

GOVERNOR ROSALES: CLAIMS OF SECESSION ARE A SMOG POT

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.-Manuel Rosales, the Governor of western Zulia state, rebutted charges with fostering a separatist movement made against him by the National Government. In his opinion, the significance afforded to a proposal made by a local group is intended to deviate the attention from the election of a new board of the National Electoral Council (CNE.)

     "It is a smog pot to prevent discussion of what is going on at CNE," the ruler said during a speech at the local government headquarters to answer to the remarks echoed by deputies and pro-government parties. He does not think that the proposal made by organization "Rumbo Propio" is of a separatist nature and maintained that the locale managed by him forms an integral part of Venezuela.

    "Zulia is not any peninsula, let alone an island. No way. Zulia is Venezuela and we, Zulians, are first-class Venezuelans. This country will be great, beautiful and wonderful when all of Venezuelans can embrace and respect each other," he admonished. The senior official regretted the attempts at involving him in alleged plot against the National Government and even in some domestic serious problems.

03 - 07 - 06

CONGRESSMAN URGES ZULIA GOVERNOR TO SPEAK UP ON AUTONOMY

       CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- National Assembly (AN) Calixto Ortega urged Zulia Governor Manuel Rosales to take a stance on the idea of a plebiscite to declare autonomy of the western state fostered by a local group. Ortega rebutted the proposal during his remarks aired on official TV channel Venezolana de Televisión (VTV) and regretted that Zulia is intended to be separated from the rest of the country on the excuse for autonomy.

    In the deputy's view, "the Spanish experience," with autonomous regions, is to be used, but the reality of the Basque Country is very different from Venezuela. According to Ortega, a number of components make him think that Rosales is possibly considering the idea of embracing the proposal. He emphasized that a plebiscite would never be successful in Zulia state.

LINKING GOVERNOR ROSALES WITH SEPARATIST PROJECT IS POLITICALLY BIASED

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Opposition Acción Democrática party considers that the claims of alleged involvement of Governor Manuel Rosales in a separatist project in western Zulia state has strictly political purposes.

     AD Secretary General Henry Ramos Allup thinks that President Hugo Chávez "loosely makes accusations and denounces plots" and stressed that Governor Rosales has never spoken up in favor of a possible separation from Venezuela.

    In the opinion of Ramos Allup, it is a strategy advanced by the head of state to "shoot at any present, future, contingent, true or imaginary opponent." In the case of Rosales, President Chávez tries to attack on a potential rival for the elections for president next December. The AD leader also ruled out Chávez' claims of a potential US attack on his government or any plot to assassinate him.

03 - 06 - 06

03 - 05 - 06

03 - 04 - 06

KIRCHNER, LULA AND CHAVEZ SUSPEND SUMMIT

    BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA.- A summit between the presidents of Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela Néstor Kirchner, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Hugo Chávez, respectively, scheduled for this month has been suspended because of "agenda problems," official sources told Efe. During the meeting, scheduled for March 11th in the Argentine town of Mendoza, the rulers were to assess progress made in connection with an 8,000 km southern gas pipeline linking the three countries.

     Argentine Foreign Affairs minister Jorge Taiana told reporters on Friday that the meeting was adjourned "because President Hugo Chávez has to be in his country to attend the commemoration of the national Flag Day (on March 12th.)" He added that the summit would be held "later in March or next month."

03 - 03 - 06

OIL MINISTER RAMÍREZ: OPEC SHOULD CUT OIL PRODUCTION BY 1 MILLION BARRELS A DAY

    CARACAS, VENEZUELA.- Venezuela's oil minister said Thursday that members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries should consider cutting production by 500,000 to 1 million barrels of crude a day. "That is still our proposal, and we're going to discuss it at OPEC next week," Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez told reporters in Caracas.

    Ramirez said that Venezuela will attend the meeting of OPEC oil ministers expected to be held March 8 in Vienna. The minister said that Venezuela wasn't concerned about being the only member pushing such a proposal, saying, "We've never feared being left alone."

    Venezuela is one of OPEC's most strident price hawks, consistently arguing to constrain oil output to keep prices high. Crude oil prices have been pushed higher recently by supply fears tied to Iran's standoff with the international community over its nuclear program and recent attacks by militants on the oil industry in Nigeria.

03 - 02 - 06

03 - 01 - 06