U.S. Criticizes Venezuela's Military "Spending Spree"
In today's daily press briefing State Department spokessman Sean McCormack stated that Venezuela's recent "spending spree" on military equipment is evidence that Venezuela is undertaking a "military buildup" that is much greater than the country's legitimate defense needs. Here is an excerpt from today's daily press briefing:
QUESTION: It's about the deal of Brazilian aircrafts (inaudible) to Venezuela. President Lula said yesterday that he won't accept American intervention and that he tried to convince President Bush to approve the deal, and yesterday Amorim said that the restrictions are not justified as Venezuela is not under sanctions. Is the U.S. going to block the sale?
MR. MCCORMACK: Again, we have been in discussions with Brazilian officials regarding this matter and we continue to talk to them about it. But we -- I would just say that in the past, and for example, I'll use the example of a proposed sale of some Spanish armaments to Venezuela, that we have had concerns about those sales. Those concerns center around a military -- what we would consider an outsized military buildup in Venezuela. The Chavez government has chosen to activate its reserves and also to build up what I could only describe as what is a planned million-person civilian militia.
In addition to this, fueled by revenues coming from increased oil prices, there has been a -- the Venezuelan Government has talked about a buying spree for military equipment. And all this planned buying spree is really outsized, in the analysis, I believe, of many, to Venezuela's defense needs.
So we have expressed those concerns in the past. We expressed those concerns to the Spanish Government as well as to the Brazilian Government.
QUESTION: It's exactly the same situation, the same kind of airplanes and exactly the same situation?
MR. MCCORMACK: I don't think the proposed -- the two proposed sales, I think, are for different kinds -- different kinds of equipment. I think the Spanish sale involved some maritime patrol, armed maritime patrol sea craft and then some airplanes as well. And on the Brazilian sale, it has to do with the Super Tucano aircraft.
|posted by Douglas N. Jacobson| Permalink 
