VeneColom

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=82 BGCOLOR="#006699" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#BF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" ><B>GLOBO Y NACION</B></FONT><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#FFFFCC" FACE="Arial" ><B>     |   </B></FONT><B> </B><B> </B><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#BF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" ><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="GLOBO Y NACION"><U><B>HOME</B></U></A></FONT><FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#BF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" ><B>  </B></FONT><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#BF0000" FACE="Times New Roman" ><B> </B><B>Economics Newsletter    Beyond the Matrixx   Plan Colombia</B></FONT></div> <div> <B>Continente Indiano</B></div> <div> <B><IMG SRC="018f4010.gif" border=0 width="500" height="1" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=7 BGCOLOR="#FFCC66" TEXT="#080000"> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=398 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="01780803.gif"> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="459" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="VOID" RULES="NONE" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=CENTER HEIGHT= 19 WIDTH="430"><div> <U>HOME</U><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#808080" FACE="arial" >: </FONT><U>WORLD</U><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#808080" FACE="arial" >: WIRE STORY</FONT></div> </tD> <tD VALIGN=TOP WIDTH="22"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="19" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="22" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="1" CELLSPACING="1" WIDTH="452" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="VOID" RULES="NONE" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=CENTER HEIGHT= 110 WIDTH="448"><div>  <A NAME="top"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A><FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#000000" FACE="arial" ><B>Venezuela's Chavez urges Colombia to revise anti-drug strategy</B></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <B>2.24 a.m. ET (739 GMT) December 8, 2000</B><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><B> </B></FONT></div> <bR> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 20 WIDTH="448"><div> <B>By Fabiola Sanchez,</B> Associated Press</div> </tD> </tR> <tR> <tD VALIGN=CENTER HEIGHT= 1199 WIDTH="448"><div> CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — A U.S.-backed anti-drug offensive in Colombia will ruin any chance for peace in that country, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said while urging Colombia to "reflect'' on its strategy. </div> <div> "Does anyone think that negotiations for peace will be strengthened with more weapons, armed men and munitions?'' said Chavez, an outspoken leftist president who has ruffled U.S. feathers since taking office last year. His comments Thursday stepped up criticism he claims has made him the target of a campaign to link him with leftist rebels and dissidents in several countries. </div> <div> Washington is slated to contribute $1.3 billion to Colombia's anti-drug plan, which calls for U.S.-trained troops using U.S.-made helicopters to wrest away rebel-held areas producing cocaine and heroin. </div> <div> Chavez says the plan will force rebels, refugees and drug traffickers into neighboring countries, including his own. He suggested one way to end Colombia's 36-year conflict would be to recognize its leading leftist rebel groups as political parties. </div> <div> Chavez has allowed Colombian rebel leaders to travel and meet in Venezuela. Colombia recently recalled its ambassador for several days to protest. </div> <div> But Chavez said his government does not sustain relations with the rebels. During a three-hour press conference, he claimed the foreign media are involved in a smear campaign to connect him to the Colombian guerrillas and dissidents elsewhere in South America. He accused news outlets with "connections in Washington and Miami'' of demonizing him because he opposes the military component of Plan Colombia. </div> <div> Recent news reports in Colombia and the United States have accused Chavez of having contacts with separatists in Bolivia and supporting rebellious army officers in Ecuador. </div> <div> The president singled out the Colombian magazine Semana, which reported that a cache of Venezuelan arms was found recently in the hands of rebels and that Venezuelan officers visit the guerrillas inside Colombia. He said no Venezuelan weapons have gone to the rebels since he took office. </div> <div> Chavez also denied a report by The Miami Herald that he met with Bolivian rebel Felipe Quispe in August — shortly before separatist violence in Bolivia — and that he gave financial support to Ecuadorean military officers who staged a coup in January. </div> <div> In the Herald report, Peter Romero, the State Department officer in charge of Latin America, was quoted as saying there were "indications of Chavez's government support for violent indigenous groups in Bolivia. In the case of Ecuador, it included support for rebellious army officers.'' </div> <div> Chavez said he had asked U.S. Ambassador Donna Hrinak to determine whether the comments attributed to Romero represented official U.S. policy. He called Romero an "international agitator'' and said he hopes the next administration in Washington "rectifies these things and doesn't have agitators, professional liars ... as high officials.'' </div> <div> Bolivian President Hugo Banzer recently approached Chavez to express "his concern about Chavez's intrusion in the internal affairs of the country,'' Bolivian Minister of the Presidency Walter Guiteras said. </div> <div> But rebel leader Quispe denied any contact with or support from Chavez. And former Ecuadorean Col. Lucio Gutierrez, who led the coup that helped topple former President Jamil Mahuad in January, said he admired Chavez but has never met with him or received financial support. </div> <bR> </tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>