Rainie
22nd July 2007, 23:47
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070720/ap_on_...IHd9wySFdW3IxIF (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070720/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/nicaragua_venezuela_refinery;_ylt=Ag5M0vnTHzS3_IHd 9wySFdW3IxIF)
Chavez inaugurates refinery in Nicaragua By FILADELFO ALEMAN, Associated Press Writer
Fri Jul 20, 5:03 PM ET
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Friday inaugurated a 150,000-barrel-a-day refinery the nation is building in Nicaragua as part of the leftist leader's oil-funded battle against U.S. influence in the region.
Chavez said the $2.5 billion refinery will allow Nicaragua — the second poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere — to earn $700 million annually.
"I have come to deepen ties with the Nicaraguan people through their government," said Chavez, who a day earlier celebrated the 28th anniversary of the Sandinista revolution with his ally, President Daniel Ortega.
Later Friday, Chavez called himself and Ortega the region's "anti-imperialist vaccine."
Ortega vowed during his campaign to have changed from his revolutionary days and said he would work with the United States, once his arch enemy. But since taking office, he has increasingly attacked the U.S. and made more radical statements.
On Friday, Ortega called President Bush a "world tyrant" who came to power "through fraud."
Venezuela is building new refineries in politically aligned countries such as Nicaragua, Cuba and Brazil to ease the country's reliance on the United States — its main market for oil.
An avowed socialist who has sought to counter U.S. influence around the world, Chavez promised Nicaragua millions of dollars in financial aid and investment after Ortega's inauguration in January.
He also has vowed to become the sole energy supplier to Nicaragua, Cuba, Bolivia, and Haiti in an attempt to strengthen his bloc, known as The Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas.
Formed in 2004 by Chavez and Castro to promote trade and cooperation along socialist lines and oppose a U.S.-backed free trade area, the alliance has evolved into a symbol of Chavez's petrodollar-based clout in the region.
Ortega said while Venezuela has sent generators to curb Nicaragua's rolling blackouts and offered the country $400 million in aid, "I haven't seen the United States send one single energy plant during this emergency."
Ortega, whose Sandinista government led a war against U.S.-backed Contra rebels in the 1980s, returned to the presidency in January and has cultivated a strong relationship with Chavez, the White House's No. 1 foe in the region.
U.S. ambassador Paul Triveli said Ortega's comments surprised him. He said the United States has launched a five-year aid program that has so far given Nicaragua $10 million and there are plans to give an additional $16 million.
Copyright © 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
Chavez inaugurates refinery in Nicaragua By FILADELFO ALEMAN, Associated Press Writer
Fri Jul 20, 5:03 PM ET
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Friday inaugurated a 150,000-barrel-a-day refinery the nation is building in Nicaragua as part of the leftist leader's oil-funded battle against U.S. influence in the region.
Chavez said the $2.5 billion refinery will allow Nicaragua — the second poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere — to earn $700 million annually.
"I have come to deepen ties with the Nicaraguan people through their government," said Chavez, who a day earlier celebrated the 28th anniversary of the Sandinista revolution with his ally, President Daniel Ortega.
Later Friday, Chavez called himself and Ortega the region's "anti-imperialist vaccine."
Ortega vowed during his campaign to have changed from his revolutionary days and said he would work with the United States, once his arch enemy. But since taking office, he has increasingly attacked the U.S. and made more radical statements.
On Friday, Ortega called President Bush a "world tyrant" who came to power "through fraud."
Venezuela is building new refineries in politically aligned countries such as Nicaragua, Cuba and Brazil to ease the country's reliance on the United States — its main market for oil.
An avowed socialist who has sought to counter U.S. influence around the world, Chavez promised Nicaragua millions of dollars in financial aid and investment after Ortega's inauguration in January.
He also has vowed to become the sole energy supplier to Nicaragua, Cuba, Bolivia, and Haiti in an attempt to strengthen his bloc, known as The Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas.
Formed in 2004 by Chavez and Castro to promote trade and cooperation along socialist lines and oppose a U.S.-backed free trade area, the alliance has evolved into a symbol of Chavez's petrodollar-based clout in the region.
Ortega said while Venezuela has sent generators to curb Nicaragua's rolling blackouts and offered the country $400 million in aid, "I haven't seen the United States send one single energy plant during this emergency."
Ortega, whose Sandinista government led a war against U.S.-backed Contra rebels in the 1980s, returned to the presidency in January and has cultivated a strong relationship with Chavez, the White House's No. 1 foe in the region.
U.S. ambassador Paul Triveli said Ortega's comments surprised him. He said the United States has launched a five-year aid program that has so far given Nicaragua $10 million and there are plans to give an additional $16 million.
Copyright © 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.