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Rice Skips Argentina Visit
by
findingDulcinea Staff
Condoleezza Rice is on a two-day South American trip to visit Brazil and Ecuador, but not Argentina. Her absence underscores U.S. frustrations with the country.
30-Second Summary
Some say the United States is snubbing Argentina because of a recent scandal involving $800,000 in secret campaign finances that were allegedly meant for Argentine president Christina Fernandez de Kirchner and were provided by the Venezuelan government.
The money was found in the suitcase of Venezuelan/U.S. citizen Guido Alejandro Antonini Wilson August, sparking suspicions that it was to be used for bribes and to finance Argentine organizations sympathetic to President Hugo Chavez. FBI recordings indicate that the funds were to be given to Kirchner’s campaign.
According to The New York Times, Kirchner “angrily asserted … that the American inquiry was politically motivated and intended to try to damage relations between Argentina and Venezuela.”
She also stated that Washington wants “nations of employees and subordinates,” rather than “nations of friends.” Refusing to let the charges hinder Argentina’s growing relationship with Venezuela, she said that “Argentina has never needed anyone to tell her who she can be friends with.”
U.S. relations with Venezuela grew tenser in January, when Chavez negotiated the release of two hostages from Colombia, but urged other nations to recognize their captors, the rebel group known as the FARC, as a legitimate army.
The BBC reported that Chavez’s remarks worsened the chances of release for the FARC’s other hostages by creating a situation in which the Colombian government will be even less likely to grant concessions to the guerillas.
The money was found in the suitcase of Venezuelan/U.S. citizen Guido Alejandro Antonini Wilson August, sparking suspicions that it was to be used for bribes and to finance Argentine organizations sympathetic to President Hugo Chavez. FBI recordings indicate that the funds were to be given to Kirchner’s campaign.
According to The New York Times, Kirchner “angrily asserted … that the American inquiry was politically motivated and intended to try to damage relations between Argentina and Venezuela.”
She also stated that Washington wants “nations of employees and subordinates,” rather than “nations of friends.” Refusing to let the charges hinder Argentina’s growing relationship with Venezuela, she said that “Argentina has never needed anyone to tell her who she can be friends with.”
U.S. relations with Venezuela grew tenser in January, when Chavez negotiated the release of two hostages from Colombia, but urged other nations to recognize their captors, the rebel group known as the FARC, as a legitimate army.
The BBC reported that Chavez’s remarks worsened the chances of release for the FARC’s other hostages by creating a situation in which the Colombian government will be even less likely to grant concessions to the guerillas.
Headline Links: Avoiding Argentina
The New York Times reports that not only is Rice avoiding Argentina, but President Bush also steered clear of the country in 2005 after being criticized by former president Nestor Kirchner. Argentina’s financial woes and strained relationship with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is the crux of the tension. Furthermore, when Kirchner’s wife, Christina Fernandez de Kirchner, was elected president last October, a scandal involving campaign finance donations from Venezuela exacerbated the U.S.-Argentina rift.
Source: The New York Times
According to a Forbes article, the $800,000 found in the suitcase of Venezuelan/U.S. citizen Guido Alejandro Antonini Wilson last August sparked suspicions that the money was meant for bribes and for financing organizations sympathetic to Chavez. The issue might have disappeared if not for charges filed by the U.S. attorney’s office in Miami that charged that four Venezuelans and an Uruguayan had acted “illegally as agents of the Venezuelan government by allegedly attempting to pressure Antonini to cover up the source and purpose of the $800,000.” FBI recordings indicate that the funds were en route to Kirchner’s campaign.
Source: Forbes
In early March, Venezuelan businessman Carlos Kauffmann pleaded guilty to conspiracy in connection with the case involving Christina Fernandez de Kirchner’s campaign finances. A four-month investigation by the United States revealed that the Venezuelan government was attempting covertly to deliver the funds to her campaign. When charges were brought in December, Kirchner “angrily asserted … that the American inquiry was politically motivated and intended to try to damage relations between Argentina and Venezuela,” The New York Times reports.
Source: The New York Times
Reaction: Kirchner angered by charges
President Kirchner said that Washington’s charges that Venezuela was providing her with secret campaign finances were similar to Hollywood movies in which “you never know how much is true and how much is a lie.” She vowed to maintain Argentina’s close ties to Venezuela. “All of our convictions and policies are going to be deepened because Argentina has never needed anyone to tell her who she can be friends with,” said Kirchner. She also asserted that the United States wants “nations of employees and subordinates,” rather than “nations of friends.”
Source: Venezuelanalysis.com
Opinion & Analysis: The ‘Axis of Hope’
Outspoken author and activist Tariq Ali argues that Venezuela, Bolivia and Cuba form an “Axis of Hope.” Ali argues that Chavez has used oil money differently than most other nations, funding health, education, and homes for the poor. He also asserts that Chavez has given people what he promised to give them. “Politics elsewhere has become so isolated and alienating from the population that people just don’t expect this anymore. And I think this is what explains (his) popularity,” Ali said.
Source: Democracy Now
Background: Chavez and the United States
In January, Chavez negotiated the release of two hostages who’d been held for years by Colombian rebel group the FARC. However, Chavez also urged the Colombian and foreign governments to recognize the leftist rebels as “belligerents,” rather than labeling them “terrorists,” and said the FARC, and the smaller National Liberation Army, should be recognized as true armies. Some felt the situation was ultimately a political victory for Chavez, but ruined the chances of FARC freeing any more hostages.
Source: findingDulcinea
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