VENEZUELA Opposes Americas Summit Declaration

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"Venezuela opposes Americas Summit declaration

By CHRISTOPHER TOOTHAKER – 9 hours ago

CUMANA, Venezuela (AP) — President Hugo Chavez said Thursday that Venezuela will vote against the declaration of the Summit of the Americas in a gesture of protest against the United States.

The summit, which begins Friday, brings together all 34 members of the Organization of American States. But Chavez said it reinforces a U.S. foreign policy that treats the rest of Latin America as subservient to Washington's interests.

The socialist leader criticized a clause in the draft declaration of the Americas Summit referring to democracy, saying such language should not be used to exclude Cuba.

"Where is there more democracy, in the United States or in Cuba?" he said. "I have no doubt — there's more democracy in Cuba."

Chavez said a new hemispheric group that does not give the United States such power should be created to replace the OAS, and he suggested this weekend's summit in Trinidad "should be the last of its kind."

The fiery Venezuelan leader is unlikely to soften his tone at the Americas Summit — even as he seeks improved relations with Washington, said analyst Michael Shifter of the Inter-American Dialogue in Washington.

"Chavez would be wise to lay low, but he may not be able to help himself," Shifter said. "He will want to remind the region, and the world, that he is still a leading figure who deserves to be taken very seriously."

The United States pays more than 70 percent of the OAS budget, which affords it certain privileges in the organization. All decisions by the OAS are by consensus.

Chavez's defense of Cuba came as he welcomed his closest Latin American allies for talks aimed at demonstrating a united front ahead of their first encounter with President Barack Obama at the summit.

The allies are demanding the U.S. further soften its sanctions against Cuba and insisting the island should not be left out of regional summits.

Obama's summit adviser, Jeffrey Davidow, a former U.S. ambassador to Mexico and Venezuela, called Chavez's criticism "misplaced."

"It's been a laborious process of negotiation. Many of Venezuela's points were accepted, as were the points of the United States and other countries," Davidow told reporters in Mexico City, where Obama met with Mexican President Felipe Calderon ahead of the summit.

"This decision to not sign the document is something that just came up in the last day or so, and is inconsistent with the negotiations that have been going on for almost a year," Davidow said. He added that the document makes no mention of the policies of any one country.

"It's not a list of pros and cons about what the United States does or what Venezuela does or what any of the countries do," he said.

But Chavez said "the summit in Trinidad smells like Monroe: America for the Americans" — a reference to the Monroe Doctrine, the principle of U.S. policy initially declared in the 19th century demanding an end to European intervention. The principle has been invoked at other times since to back U.S. intervention in the Western Hemisphere.

"Why does Cuba continue to be mistreated?" Chavez said after warmly greeting Cuban leader Raul Castro at the airport, condemning the U.S. trade embargo against the island.

"I hope the president of the United States is going to listen" at the summit, Chavez said.

Venezuela and other members of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Nations of Our America, or ALBA, also plan to lessen reliance on the U.S. dollar by establishing a common currency, the sucre, for trade purposes. The leaders signed an agreement creating what Chavez said will be a "virtual currency" for trade.

Ralph Gonsalves, prime minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, also said the eastern Caribbean island chain wants to join the ALBA. "All that needs to be done is sign the documents," he said.

Associated Press writer Ben Feller in Mexico City contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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