Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07CARACAS2010
2007-10-15 21:54:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Caracas
Cable title:
VENEZUELA AND CUBA -- CONFEDERATION?
how-toVZCZCXRO0027 PP RUEHAG RUEHROV DE RUEHCV #2010/01 2882154 ZNY CCCCC ZZH P 152154Z OCT 07 FM AMEMBASSY CARACAS TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9901 INFO RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA PRIORITY 7531 RUEHBR/AMEMBASSY BRASILIA PRIORITY 5996 RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES PRIORITY 1684 RUEHLP/AMEMBASSY LA PAZ PRIORITY 2597 RUEHPE/AMEMBASSY LIMA PRIORITY 0872 RUEHMU/AMEMBASSY MANAGUA PRIORITY 1472 RUEHME/AMEMBASSY MEXICO PRIORITY 4044 RUEHOT/AMEMBASSY OTTAWA PRIORITY 0850 RUEHQT/AMEMBASSY QUITO PRIORITY 2686 RUEHSG/AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO PRIORITY 4009 RUEHTC/AMEMBASSY THE HAGUE PRIORITY 1099 RUEHROV/AMEMBASSY VATICAN PRIORITY RUEHAO/AMCONSUL CURACAO PRIORITY 1176 RUEHGL/AMCONSUL GUAYAQUIL PRIORITY 0738 RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0936 RUMIAAA/HQ USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL PRIORITY RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY RUEHUB/USINT HAVANA PRIORITY 1040 RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CARACAS 002010
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
USSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD
DEPT PASS TO AID/OTI RPORTER
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2032
TAGS: PGOV PHUM ELAB KDEM SCUL VE
SUBJECT: VENEZUELA AND CUBA -- CONFEDERATION?
CARACAS 00002010 001.2 OF 002
Classified By: Robert Downes, Political Counselor,
for Reason 1.4(b).
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 CARACAS 002010
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
USSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD
DEPT PASS TO AID/OTI RPORTER
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2032
TAGS: PGOV PHUM ELAB KDEM SCUL VE
SUBJECT: VENEZUELA AND CUBA -- CONFEDERATION?
CARACAS 00002010 001.2 OF 002
Classified By: Robert Downes, Political Counselor,
for Reason 1.4(b).
1. (C) Summary - President Chavez visited Cuba October 13-14,
reportedly spending four hours with Fidel Castro. Chavez
hosted his weekly Alo Presidente television program, in honor
of Che Guevara, from Santa Clara, Cuba. The program included
a video tape of his meeting with Castro as well as an
apparently live telephone call-in by the aging Cuban leader.
During the program Chavez said Cuba and Venezuela were moving
towards a "Bolivarian Confederation". He announced that on
October 27 he will lay the cornerstone for a factory in
Venezuela to produce assault rifles (AK-103s) and munitions
for those weapons. He did not mention the 25 new amendments
proposed to the Venezuelan constitution late on October 12,
including one that would suspend civil liberties in special
circumstances. Following the Alo Presidente program Chavez
repeatedly toured the Cienfuegos refinery which is being
refurbished with the assistance of the Venezuelan state oil
company PDVSA, and announced plans to build fertilizer and
gasification plants in Cuba. These were intended, Chavez
said, to help the expansion of his alternative Bolivarian
trading regime (ALBA). End Summary.
Chavez Visits His Mentor
--------------
2. (C) On October 13 President Chavez visited aging Cuban
leader Fidel Castro and reportedly spent over four hours with
him. This is at least Chavez' seventh visit to Cuba since
Castro had surgery and turned over day-to-day management of
Cuba to his brother Raul in 2006. Chavez broadcast his 298th
weekly Alo Presidente television program on October 14 from
Santa Clara, Cuba. This is the second time he has broadcast
from Cuba, the first time from Pinar del Rio on August 21,
2005 where he was joined by Fidel Castro. This time, during
the more than four hour October 14 broadcast, Castro attended
only via a 22 minute apparently live telephone call-in in
which he spoke extensively on private property. There was
also a 17 minute video tape purportedly from Chavez' October
13 meeting with Castro. The program was in honor of the 40th
anniversary of the death of Che Guevara.
3. (C) In addition to having the first apparently live
participation from Castro in more than a year, the program
was notable for Chavez' return to his early remarks about a
Cuban-Venezuelan confederation. He asserted that Cuba and
Venezuela each had two presidents and were moving towards a
"Bolivarian confederation", implying other states would also
be subsequently included. (Note: This is an assertion Chavez
has made in the past, and there are even walls painted with
joined Cuban and Venezuelan flags in both countries. End
Note.)
4. (C) In the program Chavez referred to Bolivia as the new
Vietnam in the fight against imperialism. He also announced
his plans to lay the cornerstone for a factory in Venezuela
to produce assault rifles (AK-103s) and their ammunition on
October 27. While Chavez talked at length about his program
to further centralize his power by amending the constitution,
he did not mention the 25 additional amendments announced
late on October 12, including powers to suspend civil
liberties in certain circumstances.
Oil and ALBA
--------------
5. (C) Following his Alo Presidente appearance, Chavez
toured the Cienfuegos petroleum refinery, where he also made
extensive remarks. PDVSA is scheduled to invest USD 83
CARACAS 00002010 002.2 OF 002
million in order to reactivate the refinery. Once the
project is completed, the refinery is supposed to produce
enough to meet Cuba's domestic needs as well as to export
gasoline and aviation fuel to the Caribbean. Cienfuegos will
be operated as a joint venture between PDVSA and CUPET, the
Cuban state oil company. Chavez also announced plans for
joint fertilizer and gasification plants in Cuba. These he
noted were intended to reinforce expansion of ALBA, his
alternative Bolivarian trading regime.
DUDDY
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
USSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD
DEPT PASS TO AID/OTI RPORTER
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/29/2032
TAGS: PGOV PHUM ELAB KDEM SCUL VE
SUBJECT: VENEZUELA AND CUBA -- CONFEDERATION?
CARACAS 00002010 001.2 OF 002
Classified By: Robert Downes, Political Counselor,
for Reason 1.4(b).
1. (C) Summary - President Chavez visited Cuba October 13-14,
reportedly spending four hours with Fidel Castro. Chavez
hosted his weekly Alo Presidente television program, in honor
of Che Guevara, from Santa Clara, Cuba. The program included
a video tape of his meeting with Castro as well as an
apparently live telephone call-in by the aging Cuban leader.
During the program Chavez said Cuba and Venezuela were moving
towards a "Bolivarian Confederation". He announced that on
October 27 he will lay the cornerstone for a factory in
Venezuela to produce assault rifles (AK-103s) and munitions
for those weapons. He did not mention the 25 new amendments
proposed to the Venezuelan constitution late on October 12,
including one that would suspend civil liberties in special
circumstances. Following the Alo Presidente program Chavez
repeatedly toured the Cienfuegos refinery which is being
refurbished with the assistance of the Venezuelan state oil
company PDVSA, and announced plans to build fertilizer and
gasification plants in Cuba. These were intended, Chavez
said, to help the expansion of his alternative Bolivarian
trading regime (ALBA). End Summary.
Chavez Visits His Mentor
--------------
2. (C) On October 13 President Chavez visited aging Cuban
leader Fidel Castro and reportedly spent over four hours with
him. This is at least Chavez' seventh visit to Cuba since
Castro had surgery and turned over day-to-day management of
Cuba to his brother Raul in 2006. Chavez broadcast his 298th
weekly Alo Presidente television program on October 14 from
Santa Clara, Cuba. This is the second time he has broadcast
from Cuba, the first time from Pinar del Rio on August 21,
2005 where he was joined by Fidel Castro. This time, during
the more than four hour October 14 broadcast, Castro attended
only via a 22 minute apparently live telephone call-in in
which he spoke extensively on private property. There was
also a 17 minute video tape purportedly from Chavez' October
13 meeting with Castro. The program was in honor of the 40th
anniversary of the death of Che Guevara.
3. (C) In addition to having the first apparently live
participation from Castro in more than a year, the program
was notable for Chavez' return to his early remarks about a
Cuban-Venezuelan confederation. He asserted that Cuba and
Venezuela each had two presidents and were moving towards a
"Bolivarian confederation", implying other states would also
be subsequently included. (Note: This is an assertion Chavez
has made in the past, and there are even walls painted with
joined Cuban and Venezuelan flags in both countries. End
Note.)
4. (C) In the program Chavez referred to Bolivia as the new
Vietnam in the fight against imperialism. He also announced
his plans to lay the cornerstone for a factory in Venezuela
to produce assault rifles (AK-103s) and their ammunition on
October 27. While Chavez talked at length about his program
to further centralize his power by amending the constitution,
he did not mention the 25 additional amendments announced
late on October 12, including powers to suspend civil
liberties in certain circumstances.
Oil and ALBA
--------------
5. (C) Following his Alo Presidente appearance, Chavez
toured the Cienfuegos petroleum refinery, where he also made
extensive remarks. PDVSA is scheduled to invest USD 83
CARACAS 00002010 002.2 OF 002
million in order to reactivate the refinery. Once the
project is completed, the refinery is supposed to produce
enough to meet Cuba's domestic needs as well as to export
gasoline and aviation fuel to the Caribbean. Cienfuegos will
be operated as a joint venture between PDVSA and CUPET, the
Cuban state oil company. Chavez also announced plans for
joint fertilizer and gasification plants in Cuba. These he
noted were intended to reinforce expansion of ALBA, his
alternative Bolivarian trading regime.
DUDDY