Recently, Venezuelan President, Hugo Chávez, has taken serious steps to challenge American supremacy and has severed ties with a number of Latin American allies in the process.

Chávez has established socialist trading blocs with both Cuba and Bolivia. Chávez is well known for his definitive left wing anti-American stance. He openly supports Bolivia’s oil nationalization efforts. Through these actions he has won the favor of Venezuela’s lower class. He has simultaneously begun to ostracize himself from the U.S. and his Latin American neighbors, specifically Mexico, Nicaragua, Chile, and Peru. On May 15, Washington banned the sale of arms to Venezuela, accusing the country of an intelligence relationship with Cuba and Iran. Chávez’s public statements have also significantly affected Peru’s presidential campaigns.

Chávez has openly criticized both of Peru’s main presidential candidates, President Toledo and former president Alan García. He called President Toledo an “office boy” for President Bush and described García, whose past presidential term was marked by scandal and corruption, as “shameless, a thief.” While denouncing Latin American governments that support free trade, the Venezuelan president has also stirred up controversy among some of his South American allies.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil was humiliated after Chávez joined a cooperative meeting between leaders from Brazil, Bolivia, and Argentina and proceeded to upstage them in a news conference following the event.
  
According to deepikaglobal.com, President Chávez plans to visit Russia in order to strengthen ties between the two countries. In May 2005, Russia signed an agreement with Venezuela to supply 100,000 AK-103 submachine guns worth 54 million dollars. A meeting between the two could potentially bring together two of the world’s top oil producers, both of whom have straining ties with Washington.

Venezuela’s government has recently approved higher royalties for oil companies like Exxon Mobile and Chevron that are shareholders in four heavy oil ventures. The law increases royalties to 33.3 percent from 16.67 percent on all oil companies operating in the country, according to the state’s oil company Petróleos de Venezuela’s website.

Collaborations between Venezuela and Libya are in the works to provide discounted oil to developing countries in Africa. Chávez has publicly extended this offer to developing European countries as well.

The divisive stance of President Chávez is drawing a thick line between capitalist countries and others who associate more closely with Socialism. While he has solidified allied relations with Bolivia, Cuba, and Russia, Chávez has also cut himself off from a substantial portion of Latin America. How will this affect the world as we know it? Guess we’ll have to keep reading to find out.

ahodgdon