Chavez Vows Revenge for Falklands War
 

Chavez vows revenge for Falklands war

IN a new outburst of antiwestern sabre-rattling, President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela has threatened Britain with “revenge” for the Falklands war of 1982. The belligerent Latin American leftist warned last week that his recent build-up of sophisticated Russian and Iranian weapons would be used to destroy the British fleet if it attempted to return to the South Atlantic.

Speaking on his weekly television show Alo Presidente (Hello, Mr President), Chavez denounced what he described as Britain’s “illegal occupation” of the Falklands and repeated his call for a regional military alliance against Britain and the United States. “If we had been united in the last war, we could have stopped the old empire,” Chavez said, as he gesticulated to maps showing how Venezuelan aircraft and submarines would intercept British warships. “Today we could sink the British fleet.”

Chavez has often expressed support for Argentina’s claim to the Falklands, but his latest broadside was notable for both its antiBritish vitriol and its unprecedented threats. He declared that British history was “stained with the blood of South America’s indigenous people” and demanded revenge for the “cowardly” sinking of the General Belgrano, the Argentine cruiser.

Western diplomats have long grown used to harangues from Chavez, who announced this weekend that he would negotiate with guerrillas holding dozens of hostages in Colombia, including three US contractors and Ingrid Betancourt, a French-Colombian abducted as she campaigned for president in 2002. But US and British officials have recently become more concerned by his willingness to lavish billions of dollars from Venezuela’s soaring oil income on military capabilities.

On his TV programme, Chavez introduced a group of 30 Venezuelan pilots who were trained in Russia to fly a squadron of 24 Sukhoi SU-30 multi-role fighters. The aircraft were part of a $3 billion armaments deal with Moscow. Chavez has also bought 100,000 AK-47 assault rifles and negotiated to set up a Kalashnikov factory in Venezuela. He has reportedly ordered nine Russian diesel submarines, including the cruise missile-carrying 677E Amur-class vessel. The Venezuelan pilots told him they would soon be training with medium-range Brahmos missiles, a supersonic antiship cruise missile jointly developed by India and Russia.

US officials also fear that Chavez may be seeking nuclear technology from his contacts with Iran and North Korea. He is discussing a possible joint programme with Tehran to build an unmanned drone aircraft similar to the American Predator and has long been engaged in a regional attempt to promote military cooperation against the US.

So far most of his neighbours have shied away from confrontation with Washington, but Chavez is continuing to press for the creation of a “single South American army”.

His outspoken attacks on Britain and his support for Buenos Aires have gone down well in Argentina, where President Nestor Kirchner’s wife, Cristina, is the favourite to succeed her husband in elections next month.

While there is no indication that either of the Kirchners wants to precipitate a new crisis over the Falklands, military analysts say Venezuela’s lengthening military reach might seriously impede any British attempt to dispatch a new task force.

The man is mad, and/or has a small penis.

He has already introduced legislation to make him rule by decree, and now, only last week in fact, his Parliament have 'approved' the end to him ruling with any limit.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6958030.stm

.. and a day or two back, negotiated with terrorists. He'sone stage worse than being a sabre rattler, the man is insane. He wants trouble.. and given Venezuala's mineral resources, and the fact its on the US's doorstep, it has all the makings of the next disaster zone.

Lock him in a TV studio with Mugabe and let them wind each other up to spout ever more paranoid drivel until their heads explode. Take bets on who will keel over first with a blown head valve and set up a vote line for topics for them to drool on about to increase audience participation.

Got to be better than BB and the other reality crud doing the rounds.

Its nice to know your friends, Its even better to know your enemies.

Bluecar, nice one :ok:

the guys a nut job. I bet he goes into pubs shouting "i could kick all your asses!"

Hmmm....Spain's rather more vigorous involvement in shedding the blood of LatAm's indigenous people....Cuba's habit of denying its citizens the right to choose their own government....the junta's disappearances...the admission by several Argentine navy officers that the Belgrano was a threat to our ships....the gutless defilement of islanders' homes in '82 ....Hugo's penchant for Cartier watches.... Hugo's involvement in a coup in the early nineties....the arrest of a Venezuelan businessman as he arrived in Argentina with a bag full of cash, on a flight carrying a senior Argentine politician....the transfer of spoil from the old Venezuelan oligarchy to his placemen....the point of spending $3 billion on weapons when so many of his people are so grindingly poor....nope, he doesn't seem to have touched on any of these.

Single LatAm army ? Getting past Uribe in Colombia might be interesting, let alone the Brazilians, and further south he doesn't have many influential friends in government. It's believed that if Mme Kirchner replaces her husband at the next election she'll backpedal away from Chavez to a tactful distance, both to regain traction with the US and because Chavez' assistance is reaching or has passed the limits of its usefulness. She shows no signs of ramping up the pressure on the FIs either, which is helpful.

I do like the idea of a Hugo and Bob Show, though. Suggested topics :

- Who has the bigger dick.
- Who is the bigger dick.
- Whose dad is harder.
- Whose dad was first to climb Everest. Alone. Without oxygen. Or clothes.
- Who scares the imperialist running dogs more.
- Why the only callers seem to be Ken from London and Tommy from Jockistan.

Isn't the Military Attache on Blue Car's link to the Embassy staff the guy off The Soprano's?

Can we go to Belize please...

Fighting in the Caribbean is soo much more civilised!

http://www.artistic.flyer.co.uk/1563swamp.jpg

I feel sick when I see these two together. That Livingstone has allowed London to recieve free oil as a cheap publicity stunt (and because he has f#cked up with his 2012 accounts) from that that little fat cretin is beyond belief. On the plus side, it does allow us to say things like;

What do you get when you cross an w#nk stain with an oil stain?'

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1017/...f5df8034_o.jpg

Castro's been thumbing a snook to the 'World's Policeman' for decades it has been great to watch; for all his faults, he's got style and substance and is clearly a cut above a nut-job like Chavez. To class him as Doctor Evil to Chavez as Mini-me is typical of the right-wing, neo-con garbage spouted by the one-eyed American media.

Sure, Castro has been doing that, but whilst he's been getting off on an anti US crusade, what have his people gained?

I did say, "For all his faults." He's far from perfect but fair play to him for not buckling. Viva la underdog.

Anyone can not buckle when they have access to the kind of food, leisure facilities and medical care the people don't..

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programme...nt/6972511.stm

.. and talking of trouble on their back door, in addition, I wonder if China's 'concession' and 'honesty' is nothing more than a red herring?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6974797.stm

The US (and NATO I assume..) is going to have its hands full in the near future. God knows the US/we need(s) to resolve the ME problem.. and pronto.

I hope those in Europe will sit up and take notice. HC's dislikes are not limited to just the US.
I also hope this isn't simply dismissed but rather given the attention within the UK it deserves.

Some Europeans may rather like the Chav;

www.indiadaily.com/edi...27b-04.asp

Fair enough, this is "old" news but I don't recall seeing any change of intention.

Talking of China's red herring..

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6975934.stm

There's not much point in them being accountable to us, if all they can tell us (openly) is that they're supplying the enemy.

I suppose the banter about having a little willy to wave should be expected here, however, should the Argentine decide to have a go backed by the man with the little willy, how well could the totally emasculated British Forces regain control of the area around the islands?

There's mineral rights in them thar waters ye know...