The Russian – Venezuelan Strategic Alliance.

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ABOUT THE REPORT
_________________
OCTOBER 23, 2008 - Vol. Nº 5 – Issue 4
FEATURE
The Americas Report is the
continuation of the work of Dr.
Constantine C. Menges’ original
Americas Report. For almost two
years that report chronicled the efforts
of the Castro – Chavez axis and their
allies in their efforts to undermine the
new spirit of democracy and freedom
in Latin America, in favor of autocratic
forms of regimes throughout the
Western Hemisphere. The report also
monitors events in the area as they
affect regional and US security in this
era characterized by the emergence of
terrorist groups of global reach seeking
international influence. The current
Americas Report and the Menges
Hemispheric Security Project of which
it is a part will continue to support
genuine democracy, free trade and the
fostering of strong inter – American
relationships as well as exposing
growing tyrannies in the area.
Nancy Menges
Editor-in-Chief
Nicole Ferrand
Editor
1
We
are
updating
our
blog.
http://themengesproject.blogspot.com/
and leave us your comments!
Visit
it
at:
The Russian – Venezuelan Strategic
Alliance.
By Benjamin Miller* with Nancy Menges.*
As relations between the U.S. and Russia have continued
to deteriorate, Moscow has increasingly looked for
opportunities to get even with Washington. Exactly
what prompted this shift in foreign relations can be
traced directly to Putin’s concerns pertaining to NATO
expansion and American aide relief to former Soviet
republics such as Georgia. It is no secret that Russia has
continued to sell advanced weapons systems and technology to
countries like Libya, Syria, Iran, Pakistan, North Korea and China
despite shared intelligence linking several of these governments
to illicit trade and terror networks. Likewise, one need only
follow the money trail to see that Russia has now set its sights on
Latin America and particularly on Venezuela.
According to the National Budget Office, Venezuelan
President Hugo Chavez has tripled his country’s defense
budget since 2000 to a whopping$3.3 billion in 2008.
Chavez's biggest purchases from Russia came in 2006
when, in that year alone, he signed deals for over $3
billion in weapons. 1 Between 2004 and 2005 Venezuela
Bloomberg.com, “Russia Offers Venezuela's Chavez Weapons, Nuclear Cooperation”. Allison & Meyer
1
IN THIS ISSUE
_____________
•
NEWS FLASH:
ARGENTINA: Kirchner regime
seizes pension funds. Former
President Menem on Trial for
Arms Smuggling.
•
ARGENTINA –
VENEZUELA SUITCASE
SCANDAL: Venezuelan
businessman to provide details
about alleged kickbacks in
Venezuela. Miami trial reveals
"rampant corruption" in
Venezuela deals. NEWS
FLASH: Customs officer: other
suitcases smuggled into
Argentina.
•
BOLIVIA: Morales
renounces possible third term.
•
ECUADOR: New
constitution goes into effect.
•
PERU: "ALBA houses" in
Peru asked to account for funds.
PM turning friends to foes.
•
URUGUAY: Uruguay's
coalition decides: "turn left" or
"steady course.”
•
NEWS FLASH:
VENEZUELA: Iranian
delegation shares expertise with
Venezuelan officials. NEWS
FLASH: Chávez unveils plans to
build new naval base. NEWS
FLASH: Venezuela to buy third
generation armored vehicles
from Russia. NEWS FLASH: US
slaps sanctions on Iran bank in
Venezuela.
doubled the value of the major conventional weapons it imported
from$13million to $27million.
This number then sky-rocketed to $406 million over the next
12 months, causing Venezuela to surpass other nations such as
Argentina, France, Syria, Iraq, Sudan, and Afghanistan in the
index. 2 The large majority of the weapons it received came
directly from Russia.
History has shown that oil-based power politics
can be used as a valuable weapon. Both Putin and
Chavez understand this better than anyone, for it is
these very tactics that allow them to consolidate and
maintain power at home while projecting power abroad.
Putin and Chavez admiring a model of a Russian Tu-160 Strategic
Nuclear Bomber, capable of carrying twelve 200kt nuclear missiles.
The Venezuelan leader said the two Russian Tu-160 bombers that
landed in his country in September were there to conduct maneuvers
and that he hopes to “fly one of those things himself”. 3
Russia’s petro-giants, GAZPROM and LUKOIL, along with
Venezuela’s PDVSA, recently agreed to form what will be the
largest oil consortium in the world. 4 The deal includes the joint
exploration of untapped Venezuelan oil fields in addition to
shared crude-oil refining technology. The plan is for Russia to
build two oil refineries in Venezuela.
2
SIPRI Yearbook 2007, “Armaments, Disarmament and International Security”. Oxford University Press 2007. Page 419
Table 10A.1
3
http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2008/09/ap_russian_bombers_091008/
2
This is very much in line with Mr. Chavez’s pronouncements that he wants to find markets
for his oil other than having to depend principally on the U.S. as his main buyer. Since China
is also in the process of building three refineries in China to process Venezuelan crude,
Chavez’s goal of cutting off the United States might be possible in three to five years. As
proven by the OPEC crisis of 1973, oil and other natural resources can, and will be used as
weapons by those who would cripple the global economy in an attempt to put a squeeze on
the United States. By equipping leaders like Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez with the military and
economic means by which to dominate entire regions and their subsequent markets, Russia
is positioning itself to cause massive hemorrhaging in our hemispheric security structure.
The Hardware
Scholars continue to draw similarities between recent Chavez-Putin brokered military deals
and those struck by Castro and Gorbachev in October of 1962. While it may be argued that
any strategic threat comparison of the two scenarios is an elastic one at best, the substance of
such an argument is limited to the specific weapons capabilities of the respective hardware
involved.
To date Russia has sold Venezuela 5 :
• Twenty-four Su-30MK fighter jets 6
• Fifty or more military helicopters (Mi-17’s, Mi-35’s, Mi-26’s) 7
• At least five Kilo-Class attack submarines 8
• 100,000 AK-47’s as well as rights to a manufacturing facility 9
Figure 1Mi-17V5 Helicopters deployed in Chechnya
4
5
Business News Americas
All figures were confirmed through the Library of Congress using the databases from
*The Military Balance 2008. Published by Routledge for the International Institute for Strategic Studies
*SIPRI Yearbook 2007, “Armaments, Disarmament, and International Security”. Oxford University Press 2007.
6
http://www.airforce-technology.com/projects/su_30mk/index.html
Defense and Security (Russia), “Luring Chavez…” September 29th, 2008. Taken from LexisNexis.com
8
http://www.nti.org/db/submarines/russia/export.html, “Russia Export Behavior”.
9
NTI: “Russia Export Behavior”.
7
3
Figure 2: Mi-35 Attack Helicopter
Figure 3: Mi-26 "Halo" Transport Helicopter
Figure 4: Su-30MK Engaging Ground Targets
4
Figure 5: Tochka (Scarab-1) Missile Platform
Figure 6: Kilo-Class 877 Submarine showing two torpedo tubes/at sea
In addition to the pending delivery of Tor-M1 surface-to-air missile systems, the most recent
meeting between the two countries coincided with Russian military exercises
showcasing the deployment of the Tochka (Scarab-1) short range ballistic
missile platform for President Chavez. If there are doubts about Russian ability or
intent to sell this type of hardware, one need only look at their transaction records with
nations like Iran and Syria. The delivery of 29 Tor-M1 systems to Iran was the most
controversial export of 2006 10 and Syria has already purchased multiple Scarab-1
10
The Military Balance 2008, “Russia: Arms Trade”. Pp 210.
5
platforms 11 . This meeting yielded a $1billion Venezuelan line of credit with which
to buy other Russian armaments. Additionally, Russia has promised Venezuela a large
order of T-72 Main Battle Tanks and BMP-3 armored infantry combat vehicles. While these
weapons platforms are incapable of deploying nuclear payloads against the continental U.S.,
they greatly enhance Venezuela’s ability to launch conventional attacks and ultimately to
attain regional military dominance.
Chavez’s Plan
Chavez is a cunning and rational adversary. Both his long and short term agendas to
uproot opposition to his control of the Venezuelan economy, military, and political system
are clear in light of his ongoing efforts at military consolidation and constitutional reform.
While he remains adamantly anti-American in his policies, the Venezuelan
leader is well aware that a direct attack against the United States would be
political and military suicide. Chavez understands that operating under the auspices of
Russia provides him increased elasticity in dealing with the United States, and it would be
unwise to place Venezuela in a situation where it could be left isolated and devoid of fruitful
international allies such as Russia and China. It is logical then, to deduce that Chavez’s
new arsenal is intended to augment his broader hegemonic strategy in the
region as a tool of coercion.
That being said, U.S. military personnel operating out of regional drugtrafficking monitoring locations and more permanent forward operating
locations (FOLs) are significantly more vulnerable as a result of these weapons.
These tactical anchors play a vital role in U.S. counter-terrorism and narco-trafficking
operations in the region, and are on the verge of collapse. It is definite that the U.S. base at
Manta, Ecuador will not be renewed by the Correa government when our lease there expires
in 2009. Of the other two U.S. FOLs in the region, it is likely that the one in Honduras will be
removed because of their recent turn towards more Chavista like policies. The simple
truth of the matter is that a growing Russian-Venezuelan strategic alliance,
when combined with a potential decrease of United States regional influence, is
directly affecting American hemispheric security interests. To our regional allies
such as Colombia, who has been fighting against a forty year long FARC insurgency and is
actively engaged in the fight for democracy, the Venezuelan-Russian threat is an imminent
one.
*Benjamin Miller is an intern at the Center for Security Policy in Washington, D.C. He is a
graduate of the University of California San Diego and has a BA in Political Science, with a
focus on Latin American and Middle Eastern Affairs.
* Nancy Menges is co-founder of the Menges Hemispheric Security Project at the Center and
Editor-in-Chief of the Americas Report.
NEWS STORIES
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Defense and Security (Russia)
6
ARGENTINA:
Kirchner regime seizes pension funds – New York Times.
Argentine stocks plunged 13 percent Tuesday after the government announced plans to nationalize
nearly $30 billion in private pension funds. The government of President Cristina Fernandez said
that it had to protect retirees as stocks and bonds fall amid the global financial crisis. But her
political opponents called it a naked scramble for cash to prop up falling tax revenue. The main
Argentine stock index, the Merval, dropped more than 13 percent after word leaked that President
Fernandez wanted government control over the private money. The nationalization would allow the
government to pay off millions of dollars in debt and finance stalled infrastructure projects starved
for credit, a former finance minister Miguel Kiguel told Buenos Aires-based television station Todo
Noticias. But analysts said the nationalization plan puts property rights at risk, and investors fled
from Argentine stocks. "It tells the market that the government thinks it can change the rule of the
game whenever its wants, which has caused Merval to fall, while the rest of the world remains
steady," said Camilo Tiscornia, an economist with the economic consulting firm, Castiglioni,
Tiscornia y Asociados. The president's office declined to comment. Ms. Fernandez planned to detail
her plan in the afternoon before sending it to Congress, where her Peronist party has a majority. The
bill, which "basically expropriates funds from individual contributors," will likely be approved by
Congress in the next few weeks, Daniel Kerner, an analyst with the Eurasia Group in New York,
wrote Tuesday. Argentina's powerful labor unions have expressed support for the measure.
President Cristina Fernandez. Source: Latinaviva.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/22/business/worldbusiness/22argentina.html?ref=business
Former Argentine President Menem on Trial for Arms Smuggling – VOA News.
Former Argentine President Carlos Menem is on trial for his alleged involvement in a weapons
smuggling scheme while he was in office. The trial begins Thursday, but Mr. Menem will miss the
first session because of health reasons. The 78-year-old former president is accused of being
involved in the illegal sale of weapons to Ecuador and Croatia between 1991 and 1995. During that
time, there was a United Nations arms embargo on Croatia. Also, Ecuador was involved in a war
with Peru, and Argentina was banned from selling weapons to either side because it was sponsoring
a peace agreement. Mr. Menem, now a senator, faces up to 12 years in prison if he is convicted.
http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-10-16-voa33.cfm
ARGENTINA – VENEZUELA SUITCASE SCANDAL:
Venezuelan to provide details about kickbacks in his country – El Universal.
Businessman Carlos Kauffman, a former business partner of Franklin Durán, one of the five
defendants in the "suitcase trial," is testifying again Tuesday before the jury in a Miami court. The
jurors will hear Kauffman's testimony about a network of corruption in Venezuela, where there
some political leaders as well as military and government officials are allegedly involved.
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Kauffman, who pleaded guilty to charges that he acted illegally as a Venezuelan government agent in
the United States, is expected to elaborate on four of the 14 cases of corruption in which both
businessmen, according to Kauffman's statements, were involved to obtain hundred million dollars
in contracts that were secured with bribes and kickbacks, EFE reported. Franklin Durán has been
charged with conspiracy and for allegedly acting as an illegal Venezuelan agent in the US to hide the
origin and destination of a suitcase packed with USD 800,000 seized in 2007 from Venezuelan-US
businessman Guido Alejandro Antonini Wilson in Argentina. The money reportedly came from
Venezuelan state-run oil company Petróleos de Venezuela (Pdvsa) and was dedicated to the
campaign of Argentinean presidential candidate and current President Fernández de Kirchner.
Kauffman described last Friday to Judge Joan Lenard, who presides over the trial, how he and his
former partner became wealthy businessmen through a huge network of corruption in Venezuela.
According to his testimony, several members of the National Guard, governors of two Venezuelan
states and top officials at the ministries of Finance and Education were involved in the cases.
http://english.eluniversal.com/2008/10/21/en_pol_esp_venezuelan-businessm_21A2081603.shtml
Miami trial reveals "rampant corruption" in Venezuela deals – MercoPress.
The partner of a wealthy Venezuelan businessman on trial for his alleged involvement in a Latin
American political cash scandal said Friday they were both deeply involved in rampant government
corruption in their home country. Carlos Kauffmann, 36, testified outside the presence of the jury
that he and Franklin Duran made tens of millions of dollars beginning in 1998 through a system of
bribes, kickbacks and payoffs with a web of top officials in two Venezuelan states, the country's
National Guard and its education and finance ministries. "Everything is half and half," Kauffmann
said. "Me and Franklin." Duran, 41, is accused of conspiracy and acting as an illegal Venezuelan
agent in the U.S. Prosecutors say he, Kauffmann and two other men came to Miami to cover up the
Venezuelan source of a suitcase stuffed with $800,000 in cash intended for the campaign of
Argentine President Cristina Fernandez. Duran has claimed that he was set up by the FBI. Both
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Fernandez have denounced Duran's trial as politically
motivated; the U.S. has denied the accusation.
http://www.mercopress.com/vernoticia.do?id=14912&formato=HTML
NEWS FLASH: Customs officer: other suitcases smuggled into Argentina – El Universal.
An Argentinian customs officer who checked the USD 800,000 suitcase seized from Venezuelan-US
businessman Guido Alejandro Antonini Wilson told an Argentinian court, that other suitcases
entered the country uninspected, Argentinean newspapers reported. Customs officer Jorge
Lamastra testified before Judge Daniel Petrone, as part of the investigation conducted in Argentina
into the so-called "suitcase affair." Lamastra said that the inspection of the luggage onboard the
flight where Antonini and a number of Argentinean and Venezuelan officials arrived in Buenos
Aires, was "selective," according to Argentinean newspaper La Nación, EFE reported. According to
Lamastra, on August 4, 2007, the day when the suitcase with the USD 800,000 allegedly intended
for the campaign of current Argentinean President Cristina Fernández was found, "a cart full of bags
passed customs unchecked," sources close to the case said.
http://english.eluniversal.com/2008/10/16/en_pol_esp_customs-officer-clai_16A2074047.shtml
BOLIVIA:
Bolivia's Morales renounces possible third term –
President Evo Morales agreed on Monday to seek only one more five-year term, a key concession
that all but ended a standoff in Congress over a new constitution to empower Bolivia's long-
8
oppressed indigenous majority. The agreement, announced by Vice President Alvaro Garcia, came
as more than 100,000 of the president's supporters packed the streets of the capital to root for the
new charter. The proposed constitution has been widely celebrated by the president's poorer, largely
Indian supporters but has met fierce resistance from the middle and upper classes in the lowland
east, who say it overlooks their demands for greater regional autonomy. Lawmakers continued to
debate eastern autonomy, long the thorniest issue of the new constitution, as they convened behind
closed doors Monday night to fine-tune the charter's details before calling for a national
referendum. They agreed to meet after Garcia announced that Morales had pledged to "only
participate in one re-election, for the 2009-2014 term."
Bolivian President Evo Morales. Source: Indimedia.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hhK49FTEbNN81dXiS6AUs5mPbZlwD93ULH400
Bolivia legislators agree to put draft constitution before voters – LA Times.
Bolivian legislators on Tuesday agreed to schedule a national referendum on their country's
controversial draft constitution, a major victory for leftist President Evo Morales in this deeply
divided nation. "There is no going back from this process of change," said a jubilant, teary Morales,
addressing thousands of supporters gathered in the Plaza Murillo in downtown La Paz. The new
constitution provides autonomy for indigenous groups and clears the way for more socialist
measures by a president who has already moved to nationalize the nation's energy and
telecommunications sectors. Morales, however, reportedly agreed to modify several of the
constitution's more incendiary sections, including those governing land reform and the authority of
indigenous courts, which would augment the government judiciary.
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/laplaza/2008/10/bolivia-legisla.html
BRAZIL:
Brazil Real down 33% in spite of billions USD in support – MercoPress.
Brazil was forced to appeal to 22.9 billion US dollars in the past month, including sales of foreign
reserves, derivatives and loans to prop the weakened Real punished by investors fleeing from
emerging markets to more secure assets. More over sales of reserves to buy the Brazilian currency in
the spot market totaled 3.2 billion US dollars from October 8 to October 20, Central Bank President
Henrique Meirelles said in testimony before congress late Tuesday. The other types of intervention,
including loans and currency swaps, don't affect the level of reserves. “Even smaller economies, like
Mexico, have spent more than us”, Meirelles said in Brasilia. Mexico's central bank bought 6.4
billion worth of pesos on October 10 alone to shore up the currency. The Real has lost a third of its
value against the US dollar since reaching a nine-year high August first, causing some of the biggest
companies to report more than 5 billion Real (2.2 billion USD) of losses from bad currency bets. The
Bovespa stock market index has fallen 32% in the period.
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http://www.mercopress.com/vernoticia.do?id=14954&formato=HTML
CHILE:
COLOMBIA:
McCain: Colombia FTA Benefits U.S. – Latin Business Chronicle.
Latin America today is increasingly vital to the fortunes of the United States, and Americans north
and south, share a common geography and a common destiny. It is time to embrace this destiny for
the benefit of all our peoples. We have made progress toward this vision by expanding the benefits
of free commerce, through NAFTA, the Central American Free Trade Agreement, and our free trade
agreements with Peru and Chile. But the progress has stalled; our longstanding bipartisan
commitment to hemispheric prosperity is crumbling. We see this most vividly in Barack Obama's
and Hillary Clinton's opposition to the free trade agreement with Colombia. The failure of the
Congress to take up and approve this agreement is a reminder why 80 percent of Americans think
we are on the wrong track. Congress can find time to pass a pork-filled farm bill, but it cannot stir
itself to support a key ally and further American prosperity. The strategic implications of rejecting
this agreement are profound. Colombia is a beacon of hope in a region where the Castro brothers,
Hugo Chavez, and others are actively seeking to thwart economic progress and democracy. Delaying
approval of the Colombian Free Trade Agreement will not create one American job or start one
American business, but it will divide us from our Colombian partners at a time when they are
battling the FARC terrorists and their allied drug cartels. It will undercut America's standing with
our allies in a critical region and across the world, at a moment when rebuilding these relationships
has never been more important. It will set back the goal of deepening relations with our neighbors
to the south and enhancing the stability, peace, and prosperity of our hemisphere.
http://www.latinbusinesschronicle.com/app/article.aspx?id=2406
Obama against FTA with Colombia – Latin Business Chronicle
OBAMA: "The history in Colombia right now is that labor leaders have been targeted for
assassination on a fairly consistent basis and there have not been prosecutions. And what I have
said, because the free trade -- the trade agreement itself does have labor and environmental
protections. Obama's comments give the impression that Colombia's government is not doing
anything against assassinations of labor leaders. In fact, thanks to the government's security policies
the past six years, assassinations of union leaders (and other groups) have declined dramatically.
http://www.latinbusinesschronicle.com/app/article.aspx?id=2833
Opposition group asks Uribe to delve into Venezuelan links to FARC – El Universal.
Venezuelan opposition Group G-400+, composed of former ministers, politicians, intellectuals,
businesspersons and artists, forwarded last Friday a letter to Colombian President Álvaro Uribe
asking the ruler to provide the Organization of American States (OAS) with details on the alleged
links between Venezuelan government officials and the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces
(FARC). The opposition group pointed to a press release issued by the Colombian Executive Branch
announcing that Bogotá's ambassador to OAS had submitted to the regional organization
information on the location of the FARC camps in Ecuador used for drug trafficking activities and
planning terrorist actions.
http://english.eluniversal.com/2008/10/21/en_int_esp_opposition-group-ask_21A2081923.shtml
ECUADOR:
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Ecuador's new constitution goes into effect – IHT.
Ecuador's new constitution granting leftist President Rafael Correa broad powers has officially gone
into force. The complete text of the constitution has been entered in Ecuador's official register. The
charter is the country's 20th and garnered 70 percent of the votes in a referendum on Sept. 28. It
grants Correa the ability to dissolve Congress, set monetary policy and run for office through 2017,
among other powers. The 130-member constituent assembly that wrote the constitution will meet
Wednesday to name 75 of its members to a transitional legislative body that will serve until general
elections in February. Correa is favored to win re-election as president in 2009.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/10/20/news/LT-Ecuador-Constitution.php
NICARAGUA:
PERU:
Peru's PM turning friends to foes – Expreso, Peru.
A week into his job, Peru's leftist Prime Minister Yehude Simon has angered allies and President
Alan Garcia had to step in to defend him. Frustrated by Simon's confrontational style, high-ranking
government officials have already started deriding him as ''simple-minded'' and ''naive.'' Garcia,
sensing that support is fading fast for the man he picked to help overcome a corruption scandal, told
a crowd on Tuesday that ''we need to support Simon.'' Imprisoned in the 1990s over ties to the
Tupac Amaru insurgency, Simon was cleared of the charges after eight years and went on to become
the successful governor of the northern province of Lambayeque, where he won kudos for fighting
graft. But since being sworn in a week ago, he has struggled on the national stage, at times sounding
more like a vocal opposition leader than head of a government. Simon has insulted the entire
finance ministry, saying it is full of career civil servants with ''hearts that are harder than rocks,'' and
said Finance Minister Luis Valdivieso, a former executive at the IMF, ''needs to understand'' that
slashing provincial budgets will hurt the poor. He has also undercut the authority of the new interior
minister, Remigio Hernani, who has the job of fighting drug trafficking in the world's No 2 coca
grower and rooting out remnants of the Shining Path insurgency. After he took the job, Hernani, a
former cop, said he wanted to fire the head of the national police, Octavio Salazar, for bungling a
series of recent operations, including one that ended with protesters taking 60 police officers
hostage. But Simon quickly overruled Hernani, saying on radio that ''nothing will happen to
Salazar.'' At the same time, Simon, who trained as a veterinarian, has threatened to fire several of
the 16 cabinet members by December. He has not named which ones. Peruvian political analysts are
already predicting that Simon, who hopes to run for president in 2011, will not last more than a few
months as prime minister. His departure would come as Peru tries to weather the international
financial crisis. Garcia -- who hired Simon in part to help reduce poverty, which is still nearly 40
percent despite seven years of economic growth -- has downplayed the frictions. ''When someone
new comes to your house, there is an initial period of adjustment, but that doesn't mean there are
problems,'' Garcia said.
http://www.expreso.com.pe/edicion/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=36030&Itemid=1
"ALBA houses" in Peru asked to account for funds – El Universal.
Marcial Maydana, the questioned president of the so-called ALBA houses in the city of Puno,
southeastern Peru, should render account for the funds he was given by regional and local
authorities and by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez to transfer patients to Copacabana, Bolivia,
said Walter Ferro, one of the members of the board of directors of the houses of the Bolivarian
Alternative for the Americas (ALBA), reported the website of Pachamama radio station last Sunday.
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According to Ferro, the mismanagement of funds intended ALBA houses brought about
confrontation among the members of the organization.
http://english.eluniversal.com/2008/10/20/en_pol_art_alba-houses-in-pe_20A2079779.shtml
URUGUAY:
Uruguay's coalition decides: "turn left" or "steady course" – MercoPress.
Uruguay's ruling coalition process to nominate a presidential candidate for next year's elections not
only involves two hopefuls, but also a common program which, according to the latest events does
not seem to be the case as the internal dispute becomes more evident. "One candidate, one
program" has been for the last three decades the moving force behind the constellation of political
groups which make up the Broad Front movement that in October 2004 won an overwhelming
majority in Uruguay's presidential and legislative elections. The ruling coalition does agree that
there are two clear presidential hopefuls for 2009: a charismatic former guerrilla leader and ex
Agriculture minister, Jose Mujica and an economist and former Economy minister, Danilo Astori,
considered the architect of the economic growth enjoyed by Uruguay these last three years. The
original idea launched and sponsored by President Tabare Vazquez is that the ticket should be
Astori/Mujica, but this proposal did not convince the former urban guerrilla leader, head of the
most voted group in the coalition, MPP, and still senior member in the coalition according to public
opinion polls. Now it has emerged that differences are not limited to personality or background, Mr.
Mujica plain talking aggressive, almost populist, politician and Mr. Astori, academic, grayish,
allergic to smiling. Although the ruling coalition Program Commission has agreed on a basic
document with guidelines for 2010/2015, Mr. Mujica group is preparing for the "two visions" debate
which is expected to take place in the Broad Front's December congress when the presidential
candidate theoretically will be nominated. MPP grass roots argue that in the event of a second
coalition government, the incoming administration can't be "a continuity" since the original
program remains unaccomplished.
http://www.mercopress.com/vernoticia.do?id=14930&formato=HTML
VENEZUELA:
NEWS FLASH: Iranians share expertise with Venezuelan officials – El Universal.
Minister of Light Industries and Trade William Contreras held a meeting Monday with an official
Iranian delegation linked to cooperatives in the Islamic nation. According to Contreras, the meeting
was intended to share experiences and seek greater cooperation in the area. He added that that they
considered the possibility to establish a "socialist-style factory" based on the operational model of
cooperatives, and to hold a related fair in Iran. In Iran, the system of cooperatives comprises 23
million people, said Contreras citing the visiting delegation. Within the framework of VenezuelaIran industrial cooperation, authorities are to strengthen technology transfer and boost mass
production projects, such as an Iranian car manufacturing plant, which intends to produce 8,000
units per year, the minister said.
http://english.eluniversal.com/2008/10/20/en_eco_art_iranian-delegation-s_20A2080123.shtml
NEWS FLASH: Chávez unveils plans to build new naval base – El Universal.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez Monday stated that a naval base would be built on his country's
largest island. Chávez explained that northeastern Margarita Island's "strategic location" off
Venezuela's coast in the Caribbean Sea makes it perfect for "a naval base of large proportions," AP
reported. Margarita stretches 1,020 square kilometers (394 square miles). It is a popular tourist
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destination and has some 450,000 inhabitants. Chávez claimed that a naval base in the island would
help authorities fight drug trafficking.
http://english.eluniversal.com/2008/10/20/en_pol_esp_chavez-unveils-plans_20A2080739.shtml
NEWS FLASH: Venezuela to buy armored vehicles from Russia – El Universal.
Russia's state corporation Rosoboronexport, an exporter of arms, said on Wednesday that Russia
and Venezuela are ready to sign within one month a contract to deliver third generation BMP-3
armored personnel carriers. "The direction of the military-technical cooperation with Venezuela is
going vertically up," Igor Sevastyanov, deputy general director of Rosoboronexport arms exporter,
was quoted as saying by Interfax. He added that both countries are holding discussions on sales of
multiple rocket launching systems and artillery, EFE reported. Sevastyanov stressed that such
agreements would result in Russian-Venezuelan military cooperation increasing considerably.
Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin, promised Venezuela's Chávez, during their meeting last
September 25 in Moscow, that he would deliver new weapons to the South American country.
http://english.eluniversal.com/2008/10/15/en_pol_art_venezuela-to-buy-thi_15A2071563.shtml
Gazprom to become Russia-Venezuela energy consortium operator – Novosti.
Gazprom is set to become the operator for a Russia-Venezuela oil and gas consortium, the head of
the Russian energy giant's external economic activities department said Wednesday. "Gazprom will
at least receive the operator status in the first stage. This was the request of the Venezuelan
partners," Stanislav Tsygankov told journalists. Russia's energy minister, Sergei Shmatko, said
earlier the consortium, to be set up next spring, will include Russian producers Gazprom, Rosneft,
TNK-BP, Surgutneftegaz and LUKoil, and that investment from the Russian companies would total
"tens of billions of dollars." Venezuela's state oil and natural gas company PDVSA will hold a
controlling stake in the consortium.
http://en.rian.ru/business/20081022/117892646.html
NEWS FLASH: The US slaps sanctions on Iran bank in Venezuela – AP.
The Bush administration on Wednesday imposed financial sanctions on an Iranian state-owned
financial institution for allegedly providing financial services in support of the country's weapons
program. The Treasury Department's action means that any bank accounts or other financial assets
belonging to the Export Development Bank of Iran that are found in the United States are frozen.
Americans also are prohibited from doing business with the bank. The government contends the
bank provided financial services to Iran's Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics, which
controls Iran's ballistic missile research, development and production activities. The United States
also alleges that Iran was using the bank to evade international sanctions.
"Iran has adopted a strategy of using less prominent institutions, such as the Export Development
Bank of Iran, to handle its illicit transactions," said Stuart Levey, the Treasury Department's
undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. Wednesday's action exposes the export
development bank's role "in helping Iran violate U.N. sanctions so that financial institutions around
the world can take appropriate steps to protect themselves," Levey added. Treasury on Wednesday
also took action against three entities that the United States believes are owned, controlled or acting
on behalf of the Export Development Bank of Iran. They are the EDBI Stock Brokerage Co. and
EDBI Exchange Co., both in Tehran, and Banco Internacional De Desarollo in Venezuela. The U.S.
government alleged that the Export Development Bank of Iran provides financial services to
multiple entities connected to Iran's Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics. That has
enabled those entities to "advance Iran's WMD (weapons of mass destruction) programs," Treasury
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said. It also alleged that the bank "facilitated the ongoing procurement of various front companies"
associated with the entities connected to Iran's weapons agency.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hX04BzCuerC5MMIN7szQ0UWsfEuwD93VK8I80
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