Posted on 11/28/2007 2:25:11 PM PST by ElkGroveDan
CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Wednesday he was cutting off all contacts with the Colombian government, but fell short of announcing an end to diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Chavez's announcement came after a series of sharp exchanges with President Alvaro Uribe set off when the Colombian leader last week abruptly ended the Venezuelan's mediation between Colombia's government and leftist rebels.
"While President Uribe is president of Colombia I will have no type of relationship with him or with the government in Colombia," Chavez said.
Speaking in the southwestern state of Tachira, Chavez said he will not have any relationship with a "president who is capable of such barefaced lies, disrespects another president that he has called a friend, one that he called on for help."
The Venezuelan president had a similar spat in late 2005 with then Mexican President Vicente Fox. While relations between Mexico and Venezuela were reduced to lower-level diplomats, ties were not formally severed.
Uribe's 4-year term is scheduled to run into 2010, although some of his supporters are urging him to change the constitution and run for a third term.
Uribe appeared to try to calm the dispute with Chavez earlier Wednesday, saying that presidents should put aside their "angers" and "vanities" to get on with their work.
Chavez recalled his ambassador to Colombia on Tuesday. Colombian Foreign Minister Fernando Araujo vowed then not to call back Colombia's ambassador in Caracas, insisting his government's dispute is not with Venezuela, but with the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia.
The Andean neighbors share a 1,380-mile border and $5 billion in trade last year, maintaining friendly relations despite sharp ideological differences — until now.
Uribe, Washington's closest ally in South America, removed Chavez and a Colombian senator from talks with the FARC rebels a week ago, saying the Venezuelan leader had violated the conditions of his involvement by speaking directly to the head of Colombia's army.
Chavez on Sunday said he was putting relations with Colombia "in the freezer," calling Uribe a "liar" and accusing him of "not wanting peace."
Uribe replied hours later by charging Chavez with pushing an "expansionist project" across Latin America and saying the Venezuelan seemed to want Colombia to fall "victim to a terrorist FARC government."
He also said Chavez was resorting to the "old trick" of stoking hatred of Colombia within Venezuela to reap the electoral benefit. Chavez is campaigning for a national referendum Sunday on proposals that would, among other proposals, extend presidential terms and end term limits.
Uribe had invited Chavez in August to help broker a deal with the FARC guerrillas, who are sympathetic to the Venezuelan leader's socialist ideals.
The rebels are holding 46 high-profile hostages, including three American defense contractors and French-Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt. It is offering to release the prisoners in exchange for the freeing of all imprisoned rebels.
¿Por qué no te callas?
War. War. What is it good for?
(If the US comes in on the side of Columbia, it would be good for overthrowing Chavez. That’s what.)
We have spec. ops. guys on the ground in Colombia...if Chavez attacks Colombia...hopefully we’ll change their rules of engagement.
Never has a set of rules been so in need of changing.
I get it all except callas, which translates in google to callas. Que?
Chavez: CNN may be instigating my murder
“Calla te” means “be quiet”
it might be slang
"Why don't you shut up?"
See the You Tube clip.
That’s funny. If you put the whole question in google language tools you get: Why not you callas?
And if you put in just the word callas, it gives you the English equivalent: callas.
I don’t think callas is an English word, but I could be loco.
Interesting. I wish I spoke Spanish.
The guy’s nuts. He was wrong to interfere in Colombia’s internal affairs. Then he insulted Uribe. Now he blames Uribe for his troubles. Keep it up, you jerk. More and more people are seeing what a crazy fool you are!
Here is the English translation.
““Calla te””
I’m pretty sure that is used as slang for “shut up” by the Cubans down in Fl.
Here’s the translation:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3Kzbo7tNLg
But socialism is supposed to unite the people!
LOL!
The Columbian government is actually right of center, one of the few in South America.
I just hear my wife say it.
Often.
But not to me.....
:-)
The clip you posted shows that scumbag Ortega joining in with Chavez. How did he ever get elected after losing election after election? What possessed those people?
I tried putting the infinitive “callarse” in Google. It came up with “shut”, which is closer to the real meaning, “shut up”.
You might hear, “Cállate la boca”, which Google more or less gets right, “Shut up your mouth.”
If I had the time, I would study Spanish. But I really don’t have the time.
I know there are subtle nuances here, but the good King could have just told Chavez to STFU! I guess he did more or less....
Wouldn’t it be nice if every country severed relations with Chavez and his govt. - isolation would drive that egomaniacal megalomaniac over the edge.
Chavez is quite able to do something like this than for no other reason than to satisfy his ego’s needs, and assuming he is electronically guaranteed victory in abolishing separation of powers, etc., that might be all that is going on here.
“What possessed those people?”
Don’t know nicaragua in particular but the usual reason are 1) dirt-poor people in third-world countries don’t see political ideology the way we do (e.g. we saw in the 80’s the USSR supporting Nicaragua, and many would think in terms of the Warsaw Pact when thinking of communism/socialism) and 2) when they elect a more pro-west government, it usually ends up being just as corrupt as its predecessor and openly promotes its members own financial interests.
I believe there were some specific issues in the Nicaraguan election as well, but the above pattern is a good guide to why these guys get elected.
Its absurd for Chavez to mediate, since it is fairly certain that he is supplying the leftist rebels in Columbia. That would be like having Iran’s Imanutjob mediate between Hezbollah and Isreal.
Neon lights, a nobel prize
The mirror speaks, the reflection lies
You dont have to follow me
Only you can set me free
I sell the things you need to be
Im the smiling face on your t.v.
Im the cult of personality
I exploit you still you love me
I tell you one and one makes three
Im the cult of personality
Like joseph stalin and gandi
Im the cult of personality
Cult of personality
Cult of personality
Neon lights a nobel prize
A leader speaks, that leader dies
You dont have to follow me
Only you can set you free
El Comandante Barinas is feeling the heat at home, so he needs a scapegoat for his troubles of late.
But he doesn’t dare go military on my fellow Colombians. Well, if he doesn’t want a joint Colombia-US boot up his massive ass.
Mira, imbécil: cállate y deja de joder!!!
Colombia ping (after a darn long time!!!)
That's exactly what he will do/is doing. And everybody knows it. This "negotiation" with FARC was the joke of the century.
Clinton practically gave away Colombia (to FARC). Bush got it back and enabled Colombia to take control again.
Colombians are much hardier stock than Venezuelans
Colombian special services needs to use cartel methods on Chavez (ie, skills with a chain saw like in Scarface)...
How one wishes that were true! However, the modicum of health improvements in Venezuela have meant an explosion of the poorest populations, especially the non-white populations.
This is, and will be, a potent powerbase for Chávez, Lula, Morales, et al. Like Fidel, their teacher, they will be playing the race card hard. It is the perfect divisive strategy for insuring control.
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