MARIA LILIBETH DA CORTE
EL UNIVERSAL

Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez stressed once again the need to strengthen the so-called Caracas-Brasilia-Buenos Aires-Montevideo axis, claiming that he expected such a South American alliance to stretch from Mexico to the Patagonia, but warned that this project had to be pursued "step by step."
 
Chávez' comments came during his weekly radio and TV show Sunday. This time the Venezuelan ruler talked for five hours in a row and explained that Argentinean President Néstor Kirchner's visit as of Sunday to Venezuela is one of the first steps towards his South American alliance. Chávez thus plans to focus first on the Venezuela-Argentina axis and his country's joining the Southern Common Market (Mercosur).
 
"I have invited Kirchner to come to Guayana (south Venezuela) so that this magical region increases our faith and willingness to construct the new South America."

He urged his cabinet, public institutions and political parties to look south "without losing sight of north."

The 240th edition of Chávez' "¡Aló, Presidente!" show was broadcast from River Orinoco riverside, in Puerto Ordaz, southern Bolívar state, with the construction site of the second bridge over River Orinoco as backdrop.
 
Among other things, Chávez proposed introducing changes in the Venezuelan flag and coat of arms. He suggested the horse in the Venezuelan coat of arms "to run leftward" rather than rightward.

Separately, the Venezuelan ruler talked to priest Lucero Lutencio, currently in Rome, who participated in Chávez-headed failed coup d'etat on November 27, 1992, and suggested he is to restore military officers "who were dismissed arbitrarily" following their involvement in the coup.

"I am not joking about this (...) The new law governing the army provides me with the capacity to reincorporate dismissed officers at any time and according to domestic needs," Chávez claimed.

Chávez urged Venezuelans to cast their ballots during the upcoming December 4th parliament polls and welcomed foreign electoral observation missions. "We are most interested in having them here to see everything, as this is the first time in history that we have a real electoral body in Venezuela, with the most transparent electoral system ever."

Watch out for the empire!
Stressing that the states of Bolívar, Anzoátegui, Delta Amacuro, Monagas, Amazonas and Apure are "the cornerstones of the Bolivarian plan for joining Mercosur," Chávez called upon regional authorities to encourage trade and political projects together with governors in northern Brazilian regions and the government of Guyana.

"You know that the North American empire is always treating to create disturbances in our geopolitical context and we have to be ahead of them. You know what I mean: this has to do with Guyana, we are keeping our claim (over the Essequibo), which is a historically Venezuelan territory, and that is why they do not want we to have good relations with the Guyana government and people."
  
Even though he asserted he did not want to "continue to add fuel to the fire," Chávez insisted that it was Mexican President Vicente Fox who attacked him first and the Venezuelan ruler fought back.

"They (Mexico) started this mess. When you throw a stone, you do not know who you are going to hit. Be careful."

"This conflict with Mexico has to do with this (the Free Trade Area of the Americas). This is nothing personal. Perhaps it turned personal because of the Mexican President's attacks against me, and you know me."
 
Once again he used a Venezuelan verse to warn that anyone who messes with him can be "pricked."

Translated by Maryflor Suárez R.