Chavez's War Machine

I'm still not understanding what all the noise is about.

The United States Tuesday again urged the Russian government to reconsider a $1 billion military aircraft sale to Venezuela. U.S. officials say Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez' weapons plans exceed the country's defensive needs.

The U.S. appeal came as Mr. Chavez arrived in Moscow for a visit expected to include the signing of several weapons deals, among them the $1 billion purchase of 30 Sukhoi SU-30 jets and a like number of military helicopters.

The SU-30 is a long-range multi-role fighter jet and would be a major upgrade over aging U.S.-supplied F-16 aircraft that have been the mainstay of the Venezuelan air force.

At a news briefing, State Department Deputy Spokesman Tom Casey said the United States has raised its concerns with Moscow over the proposed sale, which he said would be in the best interests of neither Russia nor Venezuela.

"We repeatedly talked to the Russian government that the arms purchases planned by Venezuela exceeded its defensive needs, and are not helpful in terms of regional stability," said Mr. Casey. "Certainly, given the fact that this aircraft costs between $30 million and $45 million each, depending which model you're talking about, kind of raises some questions about Venezuela's priorities."

I can see questioning Venezuela's priorities, but I don't see this deal as being any business of the US. Chavez is no real military threat to the US, and with this new armament, will still not be a threat. On the other hand, he may be a threat to his neighbors.

This article gives more quotes from the state department.

In Washington, US State Department deputy spokesman Tom Casey reiterated US concerns over the sale and suggested the money could be better used to improve the lives of Venezuelans. He urged the Russians to reconsider any potential deals for weapons contracts.

'We repeatedly talked to the Russian government (to say) that the arms purchases planned by Venezuela exceeded its defensive needs and are not helpful in terms of regional stability,' Casey said.

'Given the fact that this aircraft costs between 30 million (dollars) and 45 million (dollars) each, depending on which model you're talking about, kind of raises some questions about Venezuela's priorities,' he added.

Chavez' socialist government also aims to arm and train up to 2 million Venezuelans against a potential incursion.

Nice that they have such a concern for the welfare of the Venezuelan people, but I don't see that this does anything to aid them. In fact, this whole tirade is proving Chavez's points about American imperialism. At least at the propaganda level. The state department should just be silent and give Chavez all the rope that he wants. If he keeps up, he'll soon be swinging by that rope. Chavez is moving more into the path of other South American strong men. I find it improbable that he'll be able to manage a Castro like control over Venezuela.