Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez brought his revolutionary zeal to the cartel that controls 40 percent of the world’s oil, urging fellow members at a weekend summit to fight against “imperialism” and “exploitation.”
Chavez used the Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to advance a struggle for the soul of the cartel. Countering him was the conference host, Saudi King Abdullah, who said the organization’s goal was simply to produce prosperity.
Their contrasting visions elbowed aside the usual OPEC talk about production quotas and currency fluctuations. In the short term at least, Abdullah’s vision is likely to prevail, said Ihsan Bu-Hulaiga, who runs a private business consulting firm in Riyadh and advises the Saudi government.
“OPEC has to do with oil; it cannot solve the world’s problems with a political agenda,” he said. “It would be putting its bread and butter at risk.”
Por que no callete, Hugo?
Chavez is living testimony to the former Soviet Union’s desire to prosyletize the Third World with the communist doctrine of radical socialism and surround the USA with people who have a mindless, let’s say ignoranrt and witless, hatred of the USA.
I have traveled to Venezuela more than once and found its middle class to be firmly free enterprise and democratic in its outlook. However, Venezuela has a large underclass that had a decent life in small rural villages, but has since the 1960s flocked to Caracas and other cities looking for a life of government hand outs, They went to the cities, even though they had to be fully aware that by doing so they would lead impoverished lives in slums.
So who’s fault is this?
Chavez is another dictator out to ruin his country.
Too bad King Juan Carlos wasn’t at the meeting when Chavez was mouthing off.
Right Katherine. Another case of trying to fit a size 13 shoe into a size 10 mouth.