k Wrote:
Rick Derris Wrote:
So, 2011: The Year of The Uprising?
This Libya situation is about to get ugly.
The son of Moammar Gaddafi has denied media reports that his father has fled Libya for Venezuela.Though denied right now, VEN could become a quiet player in all of this. IF (and mind you that's a big IF) VEN does end up taking any role in this it will be interesting to see what position the other ALBA states take on backing Chavez.
Well, knew it wouldn't be too long before Hugo chimed in:
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez says the U.S. is preparing to invade Libya. In recent comments in Caracas, he remarked that countries who have condemned Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi are only after Libya's oil. He said he's not going to believe stories about Gaddafi being a murderer because he doesn't know that to be the case. He added that Gaddafi has been his friend for a long time. U.S. forces are repositioning near Libya as Gaddafi attempts to keep control amid an uprising. A Pentagon spokesman said the military wanted to be prepared for missions, "whether humanitarian or otherwise."also
On Tuesday, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega sent a letter of greeting to the Libyan leader, sending him a "fraternal hug from the Nicaraguan people," commemorating the 34th anniversary of the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Libya's formal name.
He backed a proposal by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to create an international commission that would serve as a mediator between the Libyan government and opposition protesters.Let us not forget Gaddafi has also awarded his "humanitarian prize" to Morales who has been surprisingly quiet through this whole thing.
Of note Brazil served it's month chairing the UN Security Council in February. Brazil has long wanted a permanent seat on the council, and this year with all IBSA Dialogue members holding non-permanent seats (as well as Portugal and Colombia), legitimate calls for UN reform from G4 countries (of which Brazil is a part), the continued increase in trade with the PRC (and general favorable trade between all BRIC members), plus the introduction of the first legitimate competitor to Lockheed's C-130 in the KC-390 program which has garnered tach assistance and letters of intent to purchase from several LATAM countries (to include Chile and Colombia) as well as Portugal, UAE, and Czech Republic which is a major step forward in teh defense industry. Still no announcement on FX-2 program though if decision to purchase French Rafale could push France toward approving a permanent seat, and long time detractor Argentina experiencing severed relationships with the US in the past month which may have been a contributing factor to Clinton's all but verbal endorsement of BRA as a permanent seat, and Brazil may come out of all of this with a permanent UN seat down the road (especially given Rousseff's announcement of Human Rights as number one foreign policy topic of her administration). Mind you, I don't think it will happen, but if it ever going to, right now the stage is set pretty well for them.
As such, with the big 4 ALBA states throwing support for Gaddafi and in all honesty likely to offer asylum if exile does indeed become an option, while BRA, CHL, UGY, and COL still strongly support (and receive support from) the US, factor in Bouterse as the new President in Suriname, a general election in Peru this year (a country that is very susceptible right now to a Chavez like figure, though none of the current leading candidates are even close to that left), and LATAM is quietly bustling right now.
I love it.