This is no casual meeting. History will show that this meeting of the communist dictator and the fundamentalist dictator is a turning point in a struggle that will pit the US v. China for access to global natural resources.
President Bush may not like it, but it is critical that we interfere in Venezuela politics, NOW.
http://www.payvand.com/news/04/nov/1249.html Visit details (fluffy).
CARACAS, Nov. 27 (Xinhuanet) -- Venezuela plans to buy a large number of Russian arms, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Saturday after meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.And you ask why we need to raise interest rates?
Chavez, who was in Moscow for a visit, was quoted by the Venezuelan daily El Universal as saying in Moscow: "We are modernizing and reinforcing our armed forces to cope with any form of aggression."
According to Chavez, Venezuela will buy Russian assault rifles to strengthen its armed forces. The two presidents also talked about Venezuela's wish to "acquire a large amount of anti-tank andair-defense equipment," Chavez said.
Venezuela has already agreed to purchase Russian helicopters worth of 40 million US dollars, said Chavez, adding that the aircraft could start arriving early in 2005.
Chavez arrived in Moscow on Thursday for a two-day visit.
On Friday, the two sides signed a protocol on the conclusion of bilateral negotiations on the access to the commodity and service markets in the course of Russia's accession to the World Trade Organization.
They also signed a memorandum of understanding between Russia'sLukoil and Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA, an agreement on cooperation in containing money laundering and an intergovernmental agreement on fuel and energy cooperation.
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2004-11/28/content_2269110.htm
Venezuela to Sell $250 Million of 30-Year Bonds (Update1)
Nov. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Venezuela will sell as much as $250 million of 30-year bonds in the domestic market, tapping into local investors' appetite for dollar-based assets.
The notes will pay an annual interest rate of 9.375 percent, the Finance Ministry said in a statement on its Web site. The sale will conclude on Dec. 2 and the government will release results the next day.
The sale is too small to satisfy demand for dollar- denominated securities from Venezuelans -- many of whom lost access to dollars when the government imposed restrictions on foreign currency purchases in January 2003 to halt a tumble in international reserves, said Miguel Octavio, executive director of BBO Financial Services in Caracas....
(more at http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000086&sid=aj3vzJIRqfUk&refer=latin_america )
http://www.vheadline.com/readnews.asp?id=23735
MOSCOW - Russia and Venezuela have signed a protocol to confirm completion of bilateral talks on access to the markets of goods and services within the bounds of the process of Russia's admission to the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The protocol was signed after a meeting of the Presidents of Russia and Venezuela, Vladimir Putin and Hugo Chavez, the Echo of Moscow radio station reported.
The two countries also issued a joint declaration on bilateral cooperation in the energy sector, including exploration, production, transportation, processing, storage, sale and use of energy resources.
Additionally, Russia and Venezuela signed an agreement on fighting legalization of criminal incomes.
http://www.russiajournal.com/news/cnews-article.shtml?nd=46526
VHeadline.com - "In a column published in today's editions of the The Miami Herald, the unattributed editorialist clarifies the Herald's opinion that (Venezuela's) President must ensure a clean probe of political murder.
The Miami Herald continues: Under President Hugo Chavez, the rule of law in Venezuela has been deteriorating steadily -- some would say precipitously -- for a long time. Two recent events have made matters much worse.
The Chavez-controlled Congress last week approved a ''media reform'' bill that imposes stiff censorship on one of the few remaining independent institutions in the country. More urgently, the assassination of prosecutor Danilo Anderson 10 days ago has set off a series of arrests and at least two police killings of ''suspects'' under circumstances that are far from clear.
Political killing: Mr. Anderson was said to be investigating some 400 opposition leaders and businessmen who supported a 2002 coup that briefly ousted President Chavez from power. There is ample reason to believe his killing was politically motivated. His killers should be arrested and brought to justice as quickly as possible. But surely it is self-evident that the investigation must also be transparent and free of self-serving political manipulation -- which so far hasn't been the case.