Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez has spent close to $33 billion to influence the regional politics of Latin America, helping to finance the economies of nations such as Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador and Nicaragua, a former U.S. intelligence official has testified before the U.S. Congress.
Venezuela's government denied on Wednesday that President Hugo Chavez invited Russia to open a military base in his country, disputing a report by Russia's Interfax saying that Russian troops were welcome in the South American nation.
THE NEW YORK TIMES
President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela and President Dmitri A. Medvedev of Russia declared Tuesday that their countries would more closely coordinate their actions on global oil and gas markets and that they would work together on foreign policy, a sphere in which both countries have sought to counter American influence.
Amid talks about a billion-dollar arms purchase from Russia, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez said Tuesday that he wanted the two nations to become strategic partners to ensure ``Venezuela's sovereignty, which is currently being threatened by the United States.''
With oil enriching Venezuela's coffers, President Hugo Chávez is lavishing billions on other countries, boosting his socialist-tinged image.
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