Venezuela, U.S. Are at Odds Over War, but Oil Flows

Reuters Wednesday, April 2, 2003; 2:14 PM By Pascal Fletcher

CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - The U.S. ambassador to Venezuela on Wednesday fended off President Hugo Chavez's sharp criticism of the U.S.-led war in Iraq, but said U.S. oil imports from its key South American supplier were flowing normally.

The leftist Chavez, who has irked Washington in the past by befriending Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, has deplored Iraqi civilian casualties and said the U.S.-British attack on Iraq applied the "law of the jungle" to world affairs.

"Well, we disagree," American ambassador Charles Shapiro said when asked about the president's comments.

"We are convinced that this war is unfortunately necessary ... we want to have the support of all the world's governments, but that's not the way it is," he told reporters in Caracas.

However, he confirmed that oil shipments from the world's No. 5 petroleum exporter, which supplies more than 13 percent of U.S. oil imports, had returned to normal after a opposition strike that had slashed output in December and January.

"U.S. companies are buying (Venezuelan) oil," he said.

Despite Chavez's vocal anti-war stance, Venezuela has so far ignored calls from fellow OPEC member Iraq for an oil embargo against the United States and Britain to try to force them to abandon the war.

Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez said Sunday Venezuela was guaranteeing supplies to U.S. clients. This was in line with a policy agreed within OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) not to use oil as a weapon in any conflict.

CARACAS RILED BY U.S. RIGHTS REPORT

In another potential irritant to sensitive bilateral ties, Venezuela's Foreign Minister Roy Chaderton said Wednesday he disagreed with a State Department report this week that called the Chavez government's human rights record "poor."

The document, one of an annual series of country reports by Washington, singled out extrajudicial killings of suspects by the Venezuelan police and military, alleged torture and abuse and what it called a widespread climate of impunity.

"There are no policies to violate human rights in Venezuela," Chaderton told reporters during a trip to his country's western frontier with Colombia. But he said "isolated" cases of such abuses could occur.

The State Department's human rights report for the year 2002 also cited intimidation by Chavez's government against political opponents and said press freedom had deteriorated significantly during the year. But it described Venezuela as a "constitutional democracy" and said no political prisoners were reported.

Chavez, who was first elected in 1998, says his self-styled "revolution" is aimed at closing the wide gap between rich and poor in Venezuela, but his foes accuse him of ruling like a dictator and trying to install Cuba-style communism. He has resisted fierce opposition pressure to hold early elections.

Opponents of Chavez's government reacted angrily Wednesday to a decision by a regional appeals court to release from custody four pro-Chavez militants who were caught on TV film firing pistols during a huge anti-government march last year.

At least 19 people were killed and more than 100 hurt in the April 11, 2002 march, which triggered a brief coup against Chavez. He was restored by loyal troops and supporters.

The appeals court ruled there was no clear proof that the four gunmen had actually killed people with their firing although it said they should still stand trial for weapons offenses and acts of intimidation. Government and opposition have blamed each other for the shootings.

U.S.-Venezuelan relations have been strained in the last few years by Chavez's determinedly friendly ties with states seen as hostile to Washington, such as Cuba, Iraq and Libya, and by the Venezuelan leader's outspoken criticism of the U.S. anti-terrorism war in Afghanistan.