BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

23/07/2006

Chavez tour of nations has strong anti-U.S. feel

The Associated Press

MINSK, Belarus President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela began an international tour Sunday with a visit to the former Soviet nation of Belarus, whose authoritarian president, Aleksandr Lukashenko, has been dubbed "Europe's last dictator" by Washington.

Chavez, a former army lieutenant colonel who has accused the United States of wanting to invade his oil-exporting South American nation, is also to go to Russia, a key weapons supplier, and to Qatar, Iran, Vietnam and Mali.

Chavez flew into the Belarussian capital, Minsk, on Sunday evening. He was to meet with Lukashenko on Monday, the Foreign Ministry said.

Chavez's older brother, Adan, visited Minsk last month and proposed forming a common front against the United States, as well as holding an international conference to set up a court to try President George W. Bush.

Adan Chavez, Venezuela's ambassador to Cuba, described the United States as a "common enemy."

Chavez flew to Belarus from Argentina, where he participated in a South American trade meeting. He and the Cuban leader, Fidel Castro, rallied thousands of leftist supporters, railing against U.S.-backed free-market policies that they blame for many of Latin America's woes.

Lukashenko, a former collective-farm director who remains an admirer of the Soviet Union, has been in power since 1994, quashing dissent, jailing opponents and extending his time in office through votes widely considered illegitimate.

The United States and the European Union have imposed financial sanctions and a visa ban on Lukashenko and other top officials to protest his victory in the March presidential elections, which the opposition denounced as fraudulent.

Lukashenko, whose regime has become an international pariah, contends that the United States and other Western nations are trying to overthrow him.

Chavez's program during the 24-hour visit includes a tour of a military academy and the "Stalin Line" - a network of World War II-era defense installations restored by Lukashenko's government - where he will be offered the chance to test his firing skills.

In Moscow, where Chavez is expected late Monday, the highlight of his visit will be a signing ceremony for a series of weapons contracts.

Chavez has used surging oil revenues to modernize Venezuela's military, signing huge defense deals with countries like Russia and Spain.

Source:

http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/07/23/news/chavez.php