CARACAS, Monday September 29, 2008 | Update
Politics
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will hold
on Tuesday a meeting with his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo
Chávez in the Amazonian city of Manaus to address an
agenda focused on the financial crisis, energy and food.
The two presidents hold quarterly meetings to discuss bilateral
and regional issues, and the meeting on Tuesday will focus
on ways to strengthen regional integration as a means to reduce
vulnerability in crisis scenarios, the Brazilian Foreign Ministry
reported.
Presidents Evo Morales of Bolivia and Rafael Correa of Ecuador
had been invited to participate in the meeting with Lula and
Chávez. However, the presidential office in Brasilia
reported that the visit of both leaders to Manaus had been
"planned (but) not confirmed."
05:09 PM. Economy. If any country has cashed in on the Bolivarian revolution, that is Brazil, particularly the private companies of the southern neighbor. Over the past five years, it has been awarded contracts for works to be carried out in Venezuela for over USD 14 billion. This puts it as the first recipient of government-to-government contracts, that is, without bidding, since Hugo Chávez took office.