Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez announced on his weekly radio show Sunday 13 September that his government was buying 92 Russian T-72 tanks and several Russian S-300 surface-to-air (SAM) missile systems. Chavez was in Moscow, Russia a week ago. Venezuela views neighbouring Colombia’s efforts to upgrade its military relationship with the US, including a standing US military presence in Colombia, as potentially a first step in a US intervention in Venezuela.
The S-300 system is considered one of the best in the world and has been deployed in several countries. The US bought one for evaluation.
He said Russia was lending the government $2.2. billion to make the purchase. A consortium of Russian oil companies has paid Venezuela $1b for access to Venezuela’s Orinoco oil fields, the Venezuelan oil company PdVSA announced. BBC, El Nacional, El Tiempo
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News story, GenevaLunch, 14 September 2009.
Filed under: World news
Tags: Colombia, military presence, Moscow, oil company, Orinoco, PdVSA, Russia, S-300 SAMs, surface-to-air missiles, T-72 tanks, Venezuela