Chavez uses Spain summit to attack US

[cal04]

Venezuela used an Ibero-American forum to bash the United States on Friday, increasing the anti-Washington flavor of the summit expected to back stronger criticism of the U.S. embargo on Cuba. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez accused the United States of harboring terrorists as controversy swirled over a Cuban-backed resolution on terrorism and a second resolution calling for an end to the U.S. trade embargo on Cuba in tougher language than used at past summits.

Cuban President Fidel Castro, a veteran foe of the United States, stayed away from the summit but Chavez made up for his absence by lambasting capitalism and U.S. policies. "(The United States), which says it fights terrorism, which invades countries like Iraq using the excuse of the war on terror ... protects terrorists on its own territory," Chavez said as he was mobbed by reporters and flag-waving supporters at a Salamanca hotel.

Chavez was referring to a former CIA operative Venezuela wants extradited over the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner. A U.S. judge has ruled that Luis Posada Carriles, who has denied involvement in the bombing, may not be deported to Cuba or Venezuela, saying he faced the threat of torture. Cuba put a controversial resolution before the summit supporting Posada's extradition from the United States.

Foreign ministers approved a general resolution on extraditing terrorists, but a Spanish government spokesman said the precise reference, sought by Cuba, to the Cubana de Aviacion bombing was left out. The ministers also agreed on a resolution criticizing the U.S. trade embargo of Communist Cuba in stronger language than used before, calling it a blockade instead of an embargo. Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque has expressed Cuba's satisfaction over both resolutions, which must still be approved by leaders before the summit ends on Saturday.

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-10-14T222457Z_01_YUE480626_RTRUKOC_0_US-SPAIN-SUMMIT.xml&archived=False

[jobycom]

1. An attack is what we did to Iraq and Afghanistan. NT

[dweller]

2. Viva Chavez! n/t

dp

[lateo]

3. "faced the threat of torture"

Oh dear...

[Smarmie Doofus]

4. Posada can't be extradited because of "threat of torture"?!?

Or so says a US Judge.

By that logic... can ANYONE, anywhere be extradited *to* the US... given the current regimes reconfiguration of previous US policy on what constitutes torture?

[LeftistGorilla]

5. Funny....

They sent Mahar Arar to Syria for torture....