Obama Condemns Venezuela's Ties to Cuba, Iran
A Venezuelan newspaper, El Universal, has published comments from President Barack Obama on Monday where Obama blasts the Venezuelan government's rights history and its link to Cuba and Iran.
Obama expressed his concerns that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's actions "have restricted the universal rights of the Venezuelan people, threatened basic democratic values, and failed to contribute to the security in the region," according to AP.
"The Venezuelan government's ties to Iran and Cuba have not served the interests of Venezuela or the Venezuelan people," Obama added.
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Both President Chavez and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad are outspoken opponents of what they call “U.S imperialism.”
In 2007, the two announced they would use money from a joint fund to invest in countries that were "attempting to liberate themselves from the imperialist yoke.”
Chavez and then Cuban president Fidel Castro signed the Convenio Integral de Cooperación in 2000; a deal where Venezuela sends discounted barrels of oil to Cuba in exchange for assistance in health care, education, science and technology to Cuba under the deal. Venezuela has since increased its shipments to the Communist nation.
In a 2005 statement, Chavez said cooperation between Venezuela and Cuba is an example of what socialism “can and should do.”
President Chavez has not responded to Obama’s statements.
