US$3 billion Sino-Venezuelan trade boost to reduce United States' strangle

[54anickel]

US$3 billion Sino-Venezuelan trade boost to reduce United States' stranglehold

http://www.vheadline.com/readnews.asp?id=24081

Venezuela expects that freshly-signed oil and gas accords will skyrocket commercial relations with the Chinese government to around the equivalent of US$3 billion in 2005 in a decisive strategy to reduce the United States' stranglehold on Venezuela's economic and political life, currently as its principal export market for crude oil exports.

Speaking on his return from a 5-day visit to China, President Hugo Chavez Frias told reporters that Venezuela has "great expectations" as a result of the top-level visit.

Agreements have been signed which will allow Chinese companies to explore oil, set up oil refineries and produce natural gas in Venezuela ... China has already expressed intent to invest in 15 oil fields in eastern Venezuela to the equivalent of US$350 million and a further $60 million in natural gas. Venezuela will sell fuel oil to China for $250 million in 2005 as well.

Faced with energy supply shortages which have seriously affected its economic development, the Chinese government has expressed its willingness to negotiate new oil & gas supplies at the same time as Venezuela is seeking out alternative customers in a strategic moved to to reduce its dependence on sales of crude oil to the United States which persists in unwarranted interference in Venezuela's domestic political and economic affairs to the extent of funding opposition violence and an April 2002 coup d'etat which saw the President replaced for just two days by a Washington puppet dictator who subsequently fled to Colombia.

more...

[Prodemsouth]

1. More evidence that the US is becoming more isolated- stories by the hour

point to this isolation of the US.

[Tinoire]

3. South American Community of Nations - Common Market

You've got it! Check this out. First we had the EU, now we have...

Latin America is no joke

Stanley A. Weiss International Herald Tribune
Monday, December 27, 2004

U.S. neighbor relations

WASHINGTON When 11 Latin American countries took the first steps toward a regional common market in 1960, dismissive U.S. officials predictably joked that the ill-fated Latin American Free Trade Agreement would generate "more tears than Lafta."

But no one was laughing this month in Peru when all 12 South American nations pledged themselves to an EU-style political and economic community. The South American Community of Nations - which by definition excludes Mexico, the United States and Canada - envisions a common market, a regional constitution and Parliament.

The display of unity in Peru was as much about South America as it was about the North - specifically the United States. A more unified group of South American nations is seen as a way to strengthen their collective bargaining power in trade negotiations with the almighty yankees.

(snip)

Indeed, always bound more by geography than ideology, America and its Latin neighbors are drifting apart. As Washington moves to the right, the rest of the hemisphere is moving to the left. The presidents of Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Venezuela and Ecuador were all elected by challenging Washington-driven free market reforms that have done little to reduce the region's endemic poverty.

(snip)

http://www.iht.com/bin/print_ipub.php?file=/articles/2004/12/26/opinion/edweiss.html

[ashmanonar]

2. go venezuela!

finally, someone throwing off the reigns of American imperialism and the IMF/World Bank...

[Moderator]

4. duplicate - locking

discuss here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=1102747