Chavez Accuses Colombia Of Plotting Attack

Venezuelan President Warns Against Preparations For "Military Aggression"

(AP)  President Hugo Chavez on Friday accused neighboring Colombia and the United States of plotting a military "aggression" against Venezuela.

"I accuse the government of Colombia of devising a conspiracy, acting as a pawn of the U.S. empire, of devising a military provocation against Venezuela," Chavez said.

"A military aggression is being prepared," Chavez added, saying that Washington aims to "oblige us to respond, and later a war could be set off."

He cited intelligence reports but did not offer evidence to support his claim.

Venezuela and Colombia have been locked in a diplomatic crisis since November, when Colombian President Alvaro Uribe ended Chavez's mediation role with Colombia's leftist rebels in seeking a hostages-for-prisoners swap.

Chavez warned Colombia not to attempt a "provocation," warning that it would trigger a decision by Venezuela to cut off all oil exports.

"In that scenario, write it down: the price of oil would reach $300, because there wouldn't be oil for anyone," Chavez said. "The invaders would have to step over our dead bodies."

Chavez has repeatedly accused Washington of plotting to oust or kill him, though it was the first time he has accused Colombia's U.S.-allied government in such strident terms.

He spoke as U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was in Colombia, saying she and two other senior American officials who have visited Bogota recently "came to attack Venezuela" in their remarks. Rice did not mention Chavez during her earlier public statements in Colombia.

Cesar Mauricio Velasquez, spokesman for Uribe, said his government had no immediate comment.

The trouble between the two countries began in November, when Uribe accused Chavez of overstepping his authority by directly contacting Colombia's army chief while trying to broker the prisoner swap.

Chavez responded by freezing contacts with Uribe and calling home the Venezuelan ambassador in Bogota for consultations. That ambassador has yet to return.

Chavez has continued his contacts with the rebels, though, and earlier this month the largest guerrilla group freed two Colombian women held captive for years to Venezuelan officials.

The Colombian government later reacted with outrage when Chavez urged world leaders to stop classifying the rebels as terrorists.

Chavez said he expects relations with Colombia, which he and Uribe once managed to maintain cordial, "are going to continue deteriorating," predicting that it will hurt cross-border trade.

Chavez said the United States and the Colombian government "don't want peace in Colombia because it's the perfect excuse to have thousands of soldiers there, the CIA, military bases, spy planes and who knows what other trash operations against Venezuela."

The Venezuelan leader, a close ally of Cuban leader Fidel Castro, said President Bush and his allies "think we are against the ropes, that we're weakened right now. Well, be careful."

[gunnerv1]

What! Is Hugo getting a little paranoid. Is everybody out to get him?

[tbweb]

WITH THE HELP OF THE DRUG CARTELS IN COLOMBIA THE TRUTH IS THAT THE CIA OF THE UNITED STATES WITH COLOMBIA WANTS TO ATTACK CHAVEZ...

Posted by JLSV1618 at 06:45 PM : Jan 26, 2008,,,

Not good news for Venezuela, oil money versus drug money, I think the drug money has the upper hand. Hugo Chavez is a big mouth bully, I hope he gets his due. I hope the Venezuelan people wake up to this loser.

[samsel3]

Venezuela, Iran & Malaysia have struck oil & Gas deals and none of these countries need to shut up. Cheney and his neighbor, owner of Conoco-Phillips in Santa Monica, CA. need to stop the bull and get on with their lives. Who the hell do they think they are exploiting America''s finest for their global BIG OIL control agenda.
It''s all about BIG OIL. The administration wants regime change in Venezuela. Conoco-Phillips, Mobil Exxon & Chevron would not accept new conditions for their oil leases. They wanted a significant control in new areas in the gulf of Venezuela, but the country was looking after it''s own interests and offered a diminished role in developing oil reserves or nothing. As a result all three companies were terminated. The owners of these companies are Richard Cheney''''s friends and now look for the administrations strong arm tactics.
In 2006 & 2007 Iran & Venezuela vested oil deals and partnered to develop Venezuelas Orinoco Reserve. This tract contains approximately 30 billion barrels of oil.
Venezuela''s total oil reserves are estimated at 265 billion barrels which could top the Saudi''s Reserves.

[terrorislam6]

***... WHEN DID COMMUNISM BECOME A MONARCHY???

n kores hands power from father to son to son...

cuba hands power to his brother...

who will hugo hand power to???

i thought we were all equal??? right comrade???

hahaha

[Con Mohrat]

WITH THE HELP OF THE DRUG CARTELS IN COLOMBIA THE TRUTH IS THAT THE CIA OF THE UNITED STATES WITH COLOMBIA WANTS TO ATTACK CHAVEZ...
Posted by JLSV1618 at 06:45 PM : Jan 26, 2008
==========

The U.S. can only beat tiny islands like Grenada. Check Kennedy''s Bay of Pigs Invasion of Cuba. Without Soviet help, Castro flattened out the invaders.
Kennedy was a 2-time loser in Cuba. Russia did not get back all its nukes. They left 150 behind, some on land, some on ships. And in return, we had to take back all our Jupiter missiles from Turkey and Italy. We couldn''t take back the Thor missiles from the UK because we didn''t own them anymore.

[libsluvsuvs]

Posted by JLSV1618 at 06:45 PM : Jan 26, 2008
+ report abuse


*************************

its just chavez having a crack attack....its common liberal socialist desease

[samsel3]

It''s all about BIG OIL. The administration wants regime change in Venezuela. Conoco-Phillips, Mobil Exxon & Chevron would not accept new conditions for their oil leases. They wanted a significant control in new areas in the gulf of Venezuela, but the country was looking after it''s own interests and offered a diminished role in developing oil reserves or nothing. As a result all three companies were terminated. The owners of these companies are Richard Cheney''s friends and now look for the administrations strong arm tactics.
In 2006 & 2007 Iran & Venezuela vested oil deals and partnered to develop Venezuelas Orinoco Reserve. This tract contains approximately 30 billion barrels of oil.

Venezuela''s total oil reserves are estimated at 265 billion barrels which could top the Saudi''s Reserves.

[libsluvsuvs]

it is not outside foreign armies that chavez that should be a concern, it is valenzuela''s powder keg aka..internal uprising..the liberal media bias and censorship can only hold the truth for so long

[libsluvsuvs]

Posted by j-whitman at 02:25 PM : Jan 26, 2008
+ report abuse

**********

read shun tsu''s ''art of war'' and get back to me again with that statement..barnes and noble has it..

[j-whitman]

What''s all the concern about Chavez ?? ---- We have bigger problems in John McCain''s home state

Mexico''s army is conducting maneuvers in Arizona, locked & loaded against our Border Patrol

[samsel3]

Venezuela, Iran & Malaysia have struck oil & Gas deals and none of these countries need to shut up. Cheney''s neighbor and owner of Conoco-Phillips in Santa Monica, CA. need to stop the bull and get on with their lives. Who the hell do they think they are exploiting America''s finest for their global BIG OIL control agenda.

[samsel3]

Posted by wolf563 at 12:01 PM : Jan 26, 2008... Your comment is not realistic. Venezuela has inked deals for gas & oil with China & Russia. Russia will aid Venezueala & so will China.

Moscow -- Armed forces will be used if necessary, including preventively and with the use of nuclear weapons, for protection of Russia and its allies, the Russian Armed Forces'' Chief of the General Staff Yuri Baluyevsky said on Saturday.

"We do not intend to attack anybody. But all our partners must realize that for protection of Russia and its allies if necessary armed forces will be used, including preventively, including with the use of nuclear weapons," Baluyevsky was quoted by the Itar-Tass news agency as saying.

Baluyevsky reportedly made the statement at a scientific conference of the Academy of Military Sciences.

[Krazcarl]

This man gets smaller by the day, at first thought he had some points now he just wants power and to start a war so he will make history, be leary he''s well armed himself you think his own people would take him out but that is what was said about Hitler. He''s out for a place in history not taking care of his people.

[ajmarine1]

Chavez should SHUT UP

Posted by wolf563 at 12:01 PM : Jan 26, 2008

The King of Spain tried that and it didn''t work, Hugo just keeps on running his mouth.

I really don''t think I would mind it as much if he said things in the tone that you would expect the leader of a country to use.

[wolf563]

The Venezuelan leader said President Bush and his allies "think we are against the ropes, that we''re weakened right now. Well, be careful."
IS THIS A THREAT TOWARDS THE U.S.A. ? HAS CHAVEZ LOST HIS MIND ? IS HE WORKING TO DISTRACT BUSH FOR IRAN ? Chavez should SHUT UP and let his BUD HIGH WARE OFF BEFORE HE STARTS SOME THING HE CANNOT FINNISH . puff puff pass

[prinzowhales]

The Soviets beat the ''ell out of the Japanese just prior to WWII...one of the reasons they decided to turn south with their imperial aggression...

One of the problems with American popular history of the Thirties is that it focuses on Hitler and vitually ignores the political history of the times... One reason for this is that Hitler isn''t as scary when he shares the spotlight with the other psychopaths running wild across the face of the earth...just one of the boys. By focusing on the person of Hitler, one tends to lose sight of the monstrous machinery of State and Capital that he and his fellow statesmen served.

[sociallyjust]

The question requiring an answer here is: "What would satisfy self-righteous, dictatorial-minded, power-hungry Hugo Chavez, who seemingly claims to have the ability to place his ideologies & self as world-leading/inspiring ? Would it be to destroy western, free, democratic types of goverment, economy, political systems, etc, so he can substitute them with HIS ideas of panacea? Woe is to those who afford the false Messiah, megalomaniac Hugo Chavez, such opportunity to apply HIS ''systems'' ...
To rid Venezuela as well as the rest of us of this badboy Chavez, would range somewhere between very good and excellent.

[samsel3]

It''s all about BIG OIL. The administration wants regime change in Venezuela. Conoco-Phillips, Mobil Exxon & Chevron would not accept new conditions for their oil leases. They wanted a significant control in new areas in the gulf of Venezuela, but the country was looking after it''s own interests and offered a diminished role in developing oil reserves or nothing. As a result all three companies were terminated. The owners of these companies are Richard Cheney''s friends and now look for the administrations strong arm tactics.
In 2006 & 2007 Iran & Venezuela vested oil deals and partnered to develop Venezuelas Orinoco Reserve. This tract contains approximately 30 billion barrels of oil.
Venezuela''s total oil reserves are estimated at 265 billion barrels which could top the Saudi''s Reserves.

[ajmarine1]

I believe that they could make a strong argument that was worse than serving in Europe.

Posted by downsteamjim at 11:37 AM : Jan 26, 2008

War, no matter in what theatre you fight it, is He*l;
each with it''s own nuances.

I don''t know why he would want to make a case about which one was worse.

[downsteamjim]

To AJMarine1: I haven''t a clue. I hope some day he meets a WWII vet from the Pacific Theater. I believe that they could make a strong argument that was worse than serving in Europe. But I guess in Europe, Uncle Joe was there to hold our hands.