Chavez Blasts U.S. Arms Embargo

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According to Darla Jordan, a State Department spokeswoman, there has been a nearly "total lack of cooperation" with anti-terrorism approaches from the Venezuelan government.

However, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has dismissed the arms suspension policy of the United States "as a ratification of the empire knocking down small and weak nations," and said that this ban was not going to matter to the Venezuelan government at all. While on a visit to London, he said that his government would not respond to "punitive measures," for instance the travel restrictions imposed by the U.S. Giving an interview to the Associated Press, the president said, "There's no way we will do that. We will find a solution to this."

Referring to the United States as "an irrational regime," Chavez said it's an empire and has a great capacity to do harm to the countries of the world. Citing that "today, it's Venezuela; tomorrow it can be any country," the president proclaimed that his government doesn't need to caution the world against the "empire's threat." In London where the president is currently staying, said that it is imperialism that attacks the countries in the world and defied the U.S. embargo, saying that such attempts wouldn't stop his government.

President Chavez, however, claimed that Venezuela has "big friends" in the world who would help the regime "defend itself against imperialism," according to the report from the AP. Chavez stressed that Venezuela is not a militarized country and doesn't buy nuclear weapons and rockets like the United States does.

However, Chavez assured that oil sales to the United States would continue, though he condemned the U.S. suspension of the weapons sales to his country. He said that he is "keenly" aware of his responsibility.