http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060925/NEWS07/609250433/1009
Like a recurring bad dream for the Bush administration, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is molding himself into one of the world's preeminent anti-American leaders.
Days before he addressed the United Nations – where he called President George W. Bush the devil – Chavez hosted Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Caracas. They signed more than 20 trade and investment deals, and Chavez said he would cut off oil supplies to the United States if there were a U.S. military attack on Iran. (((Well, if it wasn't a "war for oil" on day one, it sure wasn't hard to make it one.)))
Chavez wields dollar diplomacy
And Chavez's dollar diplomacy has begun to outstrip Washington's.
(((Oooops.)))
U.S. government aid to Latin America was about $1.7 billion this year, of which $1 billion was military-related aid for antinarcotics programs. Precise figures aren't available, but Venezuela's foreign aid appears to be several times greater than the U.S. total for the region, according to a survey of publicly released data.
Chavez has rescued Cuba's economy, providing an estimated $1.8 billion annually in oil and other investments. In Argentina, he bought $3.1 billion in government bonds in the past year, allowing the government to pay off its debts to the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.
In Bolivia, he's giving about $200 million in aid programs, ranging from military supplies to computers for schools. In Nicaragua and El Salvador, he has discounted oil and gasoline to leftist municipal governments.
In the Caribbean, 14 countries pay only part of the bill for Venezuelan fuel up front and can finance the rest over 25 years at low interest. In Jamaica, Chavez has given a $274-million loan for a highway and sports complex and $65 million for a refinery.
In one of his most grandiose plans, Chavez plans to build a 5,700-mile natural gas pipeline through South America, at a cost of up to $25 billion.
"Many Latin Americans, and people in other continents, are deciding they like his nationalism, his opposition to free-market economic policies and privatization, and they are realizing they can stand up to Washington," said Steve Ellner, a professor of history at the Universidad de Oriente in the eastern city of Puerto La Cruz.
