Chavez courting Russia, China
Putin trying to establish new ties with Cuba
These plans come in addition to the construction of a refinery in China to process oil from Venezuela, and plans to create a bi-national company to install a refinery in the remote oil-rich Orinoco region in eastern Venezuela.
Caracas provides 500,000 barrels of oil per day to Beijing, a trade which is expected to increase to one million barrels a day by 2012.
Chavez, who describes China as a strategic ally, will move forward with a six billion dollar bilateral investment fund. China will contribute four billion dollars to the fund, and Venezuela two billion dollars.
Caracas will use the fund for “socialist productive projects.”
“Before we had to go to Washington to beg for money. Not now. Now we negotiate with the Chinese,” said Chavez.
Chavez announced that during his visit to Beijing the investment fund will benefit from an additional four billion dollars for further “development” in Venezuela.
After China, Chavez will head to Moscow.
Venezuela in recent years has been broadening its military ties to Moscow, and Chavez backed Russia in the recent Georgian conflict.
Last week, Russian supersonic Tu-160 bombers for the first time flew training runs with Venezuela in an area of the Caribbean traditionally considered the US military’s sphere of influence.