Free Republic

January 23, government opposition demonstration By Charles Roth Dow Jones Newswires Journalist As he lamented the downfall of Argentina's government last month and praised the troubled country's decision to default on its public debt, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez may just as well have been thinking about what the future holds for him. Some 250,000 people marching Wednesday in protest of the government's policies gave him much food for thought. The estimate provided by the event's organizers may run high, but accounts on the ground confirmed that the opposition march was several times larger than the 30,000 Chavez was able ...

BARRON'S: Bin Laden blew it: Veteran mideast hand Tom Petrie says terrorist miscalculated PETROLEUMWORLD Caracas, Oct. 13 As U.S. and British forces continue their campaign to bring Osama bin Laden to justice, the terrorist appears to have made a crucial error in his effort to "Talibanize" the Muslim world. Says Tom Petrie, veteran oil banker with extensive contacts in the Middle East, the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon may have tipped the balance toward pro-Western forces in the region. Bin Laden's master plan, Petrie says, called for turning Pakistan, the second-most populous Muslim nation, into a ...

CHÁVEZ'S NEW SITUATION Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez By Democracy & Development Venezuela Today PETROLEUMWORLD Caracas, Sept.30 President Chávez reacted late and wrong before the 09-11 tragedy. He was last among Latin American rulers to pronounce himself. He did not do it on the 11th as his colleagues did. Under presidential directives his private Secretary read a statement of condemnation and condolences. The day after it was announced that the "network"* broadcast was cancelled. On Thursday night it went on for three hours. The president read pages in the Bible, he condemned terrorist activities in the U. S. and offered assistance. ...

VHeadline.com : Sunday, April 15, 2001 -- Chinese President Jiang Zemin has arrived in Venezuela and has spent the afternoon doing some historical sight-seeing in Caracas with host President Hugo Chavez Frias ... meanwhile, intense work is being done behind the scenes to finalize details of the agreements which the two countries are scheduled to sign over the next two days. Although agreements of economic cooperation are top of the agenda, some analysts are already suggesting that the Chinese have come to conquer, with Venezuela playing the role of minor partner. Chavez Frias has announced agreement on military cooperation with ...

The collision between a U.S. surveillance plane and a Chinese fighter jet over the South China Sea reflects an emerging pattern of confrontation between the United States and China -- a development I noted in this column even prior to that incident. International attention is focused on whether the U.S. aircraft -- which made an emergency landing on Hainan Island -- will be returned with its equipment intact and how the mishap will affect U.S.-China relations. More importantly, however, the latest episode is a manifestation of the Sino-American "cold war" that has shown signs of intensifying over the past ...