The country's top tribunal moved to break the long-running political deadlock between supporters and opponents of Chavez,which has raised doubts about when, or even if, the referendum will be held.
"We will name a National Electoral Council if the Assembly does not do so in 10 days," Supreme Court President Ivan Rincon told reporters. He said the court would give itself 10 days to appoint the council if it were required to take that step.
In the National Assembly, lawmakers loyal and opposed to the leftist president have been haggling for weeks over the composition of the 15-member electoral body.
Without it, no elections of any kind can be held. The court had declared the previous National Electoral Council unfit to organize an election.
Under Venezuela's constitution, a referendum on Chavez's rule can be held after Aug. 19, halfway through his current mandate. Chavez has ruled the world's No. 5 oil exporter since winning a 1998 election,
Foes of the populist Chavez, who survived a brief coup last year, say he and his government want to avoid a vote. They accuse him of trying to implant Cuban-style communism and of ruining the oil-rich economy with left-wing policies that increase the role of the state. ***
Ramirez suggested the resumption of the practice that existed during the reign of the USSR, when Soviet companies supplied oil to Venezuela's partners in Europe, while Venezuela, in its turn, exported fuel to other countries, partners of the Soviet Union. The minister said Russia could take part in a number of Venezuelan projects for oil and gas extraction and transportation and their supply to third countries, Tass reported.
Yusufov stressed the importance of completing work on a bilateral agreement on cooperation in the area of the fuel and energy complex, to be signed shortly. He said the document "will serve as the basis for the development of the dialogue on energy." The Russian minister welcomed including into this process representatives of the business community, and proposed holding a business seminar, Tass reported.
The sides also discussed the situation in the world petroleum market and its possible change in the near future. They said it is important that Iraq be brought back into the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries again, according to Tass. [End]