news.ft.com By Richard Lapper Published: February 28 2003 4:00 | Last Updated: February 28 2003 4:00

The US could have helped "avert or at least temper" the crises in Argentina and Venezuela, according to a report published today by a Washington-based Latin American think-tank.

Although it welcomes the advances on the trade front, the Inter-American Dialogue says that Latin Americans believe the US has "lost interest in the region" and sharply criticises the Bush administration's record there.

IAD says US policymakers must give greater priority to "full-blown crises" that could take "years to resolve".

www.adn.com By H. JOSEF HEBERT, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (February 27, 3:30 p.m. AST) - Venezuela's energy minister gave an optimistic forecast Thursday for resumption of oil shipments to the United States, saying the country was expected to boost production to 2.4 million barrels within a few weeks.

Rafael Ramirez, Venezuela's minister in charge of energy and mines, told a conference that oil production, at a virtual standstill in January, recovered dramatically in February.

Ramirez briefed Energy Department officials and said they were "pleasantly surprised by our recovery."

Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham told a Senate hearing Wednesday that while the crisis in Venezuela appeared to be ending, it could take 60 to 90 days before oil imports from the South American country would get back to normal.

Energy Department spokeswoman Jeanne Lopatto declined to characterize the meeting. "We appreciated their sharing the information with us," she said.

Ramirez estimated that Venezuela was exporting about 1.5 million barrels a day, about half its average daily export last year. He also said gasoline exports from Venezuelan refineries were likely to resume in mid-March.

The Venezuelan government's past assessments on the recovery of the country's oil industry have been disputed by critics, who have said they are overly optimistic.

Political turmoil and strikes beginning in December paralyzed the industry and brought Venezuela's oil exports to a halt.

The shutoff of Venezuelan supplies - along with nervousness about a possible war with Iraq - have caused crude oil prices, as well as the cost of gasoline and heating oil, to soar.

The world's fifth largest oil producer, Venezuela is a major source of oil for the United States, accounting for about 14 percent of U.S. oil imports last year, or about 1.3 million barrels of crude and refined gasoline.

During a meeting Thursday at Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington group specializing in Western Hemisphere affairs, Ramirez said oil shipments in the eastern part of Venezuela have nearly gotten back to normal in recent weeks. He said ExxonMobil and Valero Energy are inspecting shipping facilities in anticipation of resuming shipments into the United States.

Ramirez said his government expects oil production to reach the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' quota by the end of the month. He said production has risen from 150,000 barrels a day in early January to just over 2 million barrels a day. He said production is expected to reach 2.9 million barrels a day by the end of March.

www.voanews.com VOA News 27 Feb 2003, 23:13 UTC

Venezuelan authorities say a device has exploded near the home of Colombia's ambassador in Caracas.

Investigators say the blast happened Thursday, 40 meters from the home of Ambassador Maria Angela Holguin. The explosion damaged nearby buildings, but there were no immediate reports of injuries.

The trouble comes two days after twin explosions ripped through Colombia's consulate in Caracas, and the Spanish Embassy there.

At least four people were injured in the attacks that supporters and opponents of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez have blamed on each other.

Two days before the Colombian and Spanish diplomatic missions were attacked, President Chavez accused Colombia, Spain and the United States of meddling in his country's internal affairs. The U.S. embassy in Caracas also closed for one day Thursday after receiving a threat.

The three nations had expressed concern about the recent arrest of a Venezuelan business leader, Carlos Fernandez, who helped organize a two-month general strike against Mr. Chavez. The two-month walkout was aimed at forcing the Venezuelan president to resign and call early elections.

Venezuela's government and the U.S. State Department have condemned the attacks on the diplomatic missions.

In a related development, the Reuters news agency says the six-member "Group of Friends" of Venezuela will meet in Brasilia March 10 in another bid to help the troubled Andean nation resolve its political crisis.

Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Portugal, Spain and the United States comprise the group that was formed several weeks ago to help facilitate a dialogue between Venezuela's government and opposition.

Thursday, February 27, 2003 · Last updated 3:57 p.m. PT By H. JOSEF HEBERT ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

WASHINGTON -- Venezuela's energy minister gave an optimistic forecast Thursday for resumption of oil shipments to the United States, saying the country was expected to boost production to 2.4 million barrels within a few weeks.

Rafael Ramirez, Venezuela's minister in charge of energy and mines, told a conference that oil production, at a virtual standstill in January, recovered dramatically in February.

Ramirez briefed Energy Department officials and said they were "pleasantly surprised by our recovery."

Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham told a Senate hearing Wednesday that while the crisis in Venezuela appeared to be ending, it could take 60 to 90 days before oil imports from the South American country would get back to normal.

Energy Department spokeswoman Jeanne Lopatto declined to characterize the meeting. "We appreciated their sharing the information with us," she said.

Ramirez estimated that Venezuela was exporting about 1.5 million barrels a day, about half its average daily export last year. He also said gasoline exports from Venezuelan refineries were likely to resume in mid-March.

The Venezuelan government's past assessments on the recovery of the country's oil industry have been disputed by critics, who have said they are overly optimistic.

Political turmoil and strikes beginning in December paralyzed the industry and brought Venezuela's oil exports to a halt.

The shutoff of Venezuelan supplies - along with nervousness about a possible war with Iraq - have caused crude oil prices, as well as the cost of gasoline and heating oil, to soar.

The world's fifth largest oil producer, Venezuela is a major source of oil for the United States, accounting for about 14 percent of U.S. oil imports last year, or about 1.3 million barrels of crude and refined gasoline.

During a meeting Thursday at Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington group specializing in Western Hemisphere affairs, Ramirez said oil shipments in the eastern part of Venezuela have nearly gotten back to normal in recent weeks. He said ExxonMobil and Valero Energy are inspecting shipping facilities in anticipation of resuming shipments into the United States.

Ramirez said his government expects oil production to reach the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries' quota by the end of the month. He said production has risen from 150,000 barrels a day in early January to just over 2 million barrels a day. He said production is expected to reach 2.9 million barrels a day by the end of March.

www.dailytimes.com.pk

By Khalid Hasan WASHINGTON: Pakistan signalled to the United States on Wednesday that it will back a new resolution on disarming Iraq, according to an exclusive report in the Los Angeles Times. The report described it as “a major boost from an Islamic nation that could help swing wavering votes on the Security Council,” quoting US and Pakistani officials. Daily Times was unable to obtain confirmation of the reported decision from officials at Pakistan’s permanent mission to the United Nations. “We are very good allies of the United States and value our relationship and want to see that blossom,” a senior Pakistani official told the Los Angeles Times. “The issue of Iraq will not become a problem between us.” “Pakistan’s decision came as Mexico also signalled its potential backing, and as the United States intensified the diplomatic squeeze for key votes from the council’s African and Latin American members. US diplomats hope that building up a bloc of support will put pressure on France and Russia not to veto the resolution, which would allow the use of force against Iraqi President Saddam Hussein,” said the Los Angeles Times report. Pakistan’s private signal of potential support could mark a turning point, US officials said Wednesday. Besides adding an important vote, its critical decision could prevent any move to create a bloc among the 10 rotating members of the council. Six of the 10, including Pakistan, have discussed group abstention, which would cause a resolution to fail if the permanent members can’t find common ground. The intention, they have said, would be to preserve the council’s moral authority. The report said that the decision has not been easy for Islamabad, which has favoured giving the process more time and working through the United Nations. The government, already struggling to control anti-American sentiment, could face a popular backlash for supporting further action perceived to be against Islam. “We have public opinion very exercised about the plight of the Iraqi people, and we wouldn’t like them to suffer any more. But we have a firm position that Iraq must comply with the Security Council and Resolution 1441 and divest itself of weapons of mass destruction,” the senior Pakistani official who was not identified told the newspaper, referring to the November resolution that returned inspectors to Iraq. “It’ll help us politically to have UN inspectors come back and say Iraq is in final material breach,” a second official said. “But will the [Pakistani] government fall if this does not happen? No. A lot of American flags are being burnt, but we can weather that,” he added. The report noted that the economic backlash is a greater immediate concern in Islamabad, Pakistanis say. About 70 percent of Pakistan’s imported oil comes from the nearby Persian Gulf, mainly Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Iraq. Instability in the region could have severe repercussions, and Pakistan would need help if the supply were cut off. “We don’t have Venezuela and Mexico nearby to back us up,” the second Pakistani official said. Despite the potential political and economic cost to the government, Pakistani officials insisted that the United States did not offer President Pervez Musharraf any deals in exchange for his country’s vote. “We are not asking any price for our support. The US has not leaned on us. We have a principled position. We’re aware of each other’s point of view and agreed on what Iraq has to do,” the senior official said. The report said that the United States has been pressing its case in frequent contacts, and in the context of the importance of Iraq in Islamabad’s long-term relationship with Washington, according to other Pakistani sources. “The issue was not framed in terms of merely, ‘Are you with us or against us?’ It was more like, ‘Just how with us are you?’” said an additional Pakistani source.