Chavez Regrets Spat
With Colombian President
PLAYA DEL CARMEN - Venezuelan President Hugo
Chavez said on Tuesday that he deeply
regretted Monday's row with his Colombian
counterpart. "There is no one who regrets
the incident more than us," he told a press
conference after the conclusion of a two-day
Rio Group Summit in Playa del Carmen, a
resort on Mexico's Caribbean coast.
According to media reports, Chavez told his
Colombian counterpart Alvaro Uribe to "go to
hell" during a summit debate on Monday.
The Venezuelan president said on Tuesday
that the spat occurred when Uribe
interrupted his reply to a presentation
given by Uribe. A group of regional leaders
mediate the dispute afterwards.
"I don't know why Uribe did not want me to
complete my response," Chavez said.
"We are willing to consider everything
providing there is an environment of
respect. Venezuela and Colombia have
complementary economies but what is missing
is a government in Colombia that respects
the Venezuelan government," he added.
Chavez and Uribe haven't gotten along with
each other for some time.
The Colombian president had accused his
Venezuelan counterpart of putting in place
an economic blockade similar to that of the
United States on Cuba by closing Venezuelan
border with Colombia.
But Chavez argued that the two-way trade is
around 30 times larger than what it was when
he took office.
The Venezuelan president said it was his
duty as a head of state to overcome personal
or ideological differences, saying he hoped
that Monday's spat was a moment of catharsis
that would serve as a precursor to a more
productive relationship.
Chavez was in town attending a summit of Rio
Group which expanded the group's membership
to 33 by adding the 15-member Caribbean
Community (Caricom) and provisionally
changed the body's name to the Community of
Latin American and Caribbean States.
Venezuela will host the first summit of the
new organization in July next year and is
seeking to craft a constitution before that
date.
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