Brazilian President says Chavez Frias will find a way out of crisis

<a href=www.vheadline.com>Venezuela's Electronic News Posted: Sunday, June 22, 2003 By: Patrick J. O'Donoghue

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva says President Hugo Chavez Frias will find a way out of Venezuela's political crisis, which has been brewing for a long time. Speaking after meeting US President George W. Bush in Washington for the third time, Lula says he fully supports the recent negotiations agreement between the Venezuelan  government and opposition ... "it's an important step forward ... Chavez Frias has enormous problems to solve but he also has the will to solve them." 

The Brazilian President points out that Brazil played an active part in the Venezuelan mediation process through its participation in the six-nation (Chile, Mexico, Brazil, Portugal, Spain and the USA) Group of Friends. 

Lula da Silva met President Chavez Frias during a meeting of the Southern Cone Economic Community (Mercosur) in Paraguay last week. 

The US media has welcomed Lula's visit has positive saying he reminds then of Latin American politicians of the 50 and 60s because of his pragmatism and charismatic leadership. It would appear that the US government is coming round to seeing Brazil as its spokesman in the region, especially given the thorny problems of civil war in Colombia, Cuba, narco-trafficking, defense of democracy and of course, Venezuela's unending political crisis. 

Some US analysts are suggesting more caution in US policy, alleging that Brazil has come of age and Lula will pursue greater independence as Brazil attempts to gain economic and political bargaining power in the region turning into an equal partner and possible rival with the USA ... Lula da Silva is backing President Chavez Frias and defending Brazil's economic openings in eastern Venezuela that will have a decisive knock-on effect in the poorly developed Northern Brazil.