CHAVEZ: US PROVOKING ALL-OUT WAR IN S. AMERICA
PRESS TV
Mon, 09 Nov 2009 06:51:06 GMT
Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez President Hugo Chavez has threatened
an all-out war in South America should the US want to provoke Colombia
to launch an armed conflict in the region.
Chavez said Venezuela could end up going to war with Colombia,
warning that if a conflict broke out "it could extend throughout the
whole continent."
The anti-US leader ordered the military to prepare for a possible war,
addressing President Barack Obama to be cautious about any move in
the region.
"Don’t make a mistake, Mr. Obama, by ordering an attack against
Venezuela by way of Colombia," Chavez said during his weekly television
and radio program Sunday.
However, the Colombian government dismissed Chavez’s threats, saying
it would protest to the Organization of American States (OAS) and
the UN Security Council.
"Colombia never has, and never will, make an act of war," government
spokesman Cesar Mauricio Velasquez said.
A recent military agreement between the US and Colombia that gives
American troops greater access to military bases of Colombia has
sparked controversy in the region.
In recent weeks, tensions between the two Latin American nations have
been worsened by a series of shootings.
Last week, two Venezuelan National Guard troops were killed at a
checkpoint near the border in Venezuela’s western Tachira state,
prompting Caracas to temporarily close some border crossings.
The violence prompted Venezuela to send 15,000 soldiers to the border
with Colombia on Thursday to increase security along the border.