The Washington Times
  • Subscribe
  • Times News Services
  • RSS
  • Mobile Headlines
  • e-edition
  • E-MAIL ALERTS
  • REGISTER
  • LOG IN
  • E-MAIL ALERTS
  • WELCOME
  • Your Profile
  • Log Out
  • Front Page Image
  • Classifieds
  • Autos
  • Real Estate
  • Jobs
  • Special Sections
  • Customer Service
  • Home
  • News
  • Opinion
    • Editorials
    • Commentary
    • Columns
    • Water Cooler
    • Letters
    • Cartoons
    • Books
  • Sports
  • Culture
    • Home & Living
    • Family & Kids
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Travel
    • Health
    • Washington Visitors
    • Books
    • Military History
    • Life
    • Auto
    • TV Listings
    • Movie Listings
    • Death Notices
    • Entertainment
  • Communities
  • Rebate Shopping
    • Stores
    • Coupons
    • Daily Double
    • Promotion
    • How It Works
  • Photos
  • Podcasts
    • About Headlines
    • Audio and Radio
    • America's Morning News
  • Business

    Toyota's bumpy ride began with race for growth

  • Security

    Chinese see U.S. debt as weapon in Taiwan dispute

  • World

    Obama ratchets up Iran sanctions threat

  • National

    Mid-Atlantic braces for new wallop of snow

  • Business

    European economies facing grim times

  • Politics

    Obama rejects starting over on health care

  • Politics

    Illegal immigration fell sharply in '08

Sunday, August 29, 2004

Embassy Row

Rate this story

Average 0.00
after 0 votes
Login or register to rate this story

  • Font Size -+
  • Print
  • Email
  • Comment
  • Tweet this!
  • Share
  • Article
  • Comments ()
  • Click-2-Listen

More Stories

  • Obama tells GOP it needs to budge
  • Dems seek quick fix on campaign finance
  • 1 million fewer illegals in U.S., study says
  • First lady takes on childhood obesity

By

Venezuela's rhetoric

Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage is urging Venezuela to tone down its anti-American rhetoric if it wants to maintain good relations with the United States.

Mr. Armitage expressed U.S. hopes that President Hugo Chavez will use his victory in the recent recall referendum to heal the divisions with his political opposition, which considers him an authoritarian ruler and criticizes his close contacts with Cuba's Fidel Castro. Mr. Chavez has repeatedly accused the Bush administration of supporting efforts to remove him from office, a charge strongly denied in Washington.

"We hope the government of Venezuela will take a constructive approach to our bilateral relationship," Mr. Armitage said last week, at the swearing-in ceremony for William R. Brownfield, the new U.S. ambassador to the oil-rich South American nation.

"To that end, we also urge the Venezuela government to carefully consider how its actions and its rhetoric might affect the future course of our bilateral relations."

The Bush administration accepted the results of the referendum, in which Mr. Chavez took 59 percent of the vote. The opposition, however, accused Mr. Chavez of rigging the referendum, citing exit polls that showed the opposite result and many polling places that produced the exact same vote totals.

With Venezuelan Ambassador Bernardo Alvarez in the audience, Mr. Armitage said, "We hope ... that the government of Venezuela will take a constructive approach -- one that will help unite a polarized society and heal the wounds of a hard-fought campaign."

Mr. Armitage noted that the United States is Venezuela's top customer for oil and that Venezuela has historically been a reliable supplier. He also said the two countries have mutual interests in combating narcotics trafficking and terrorism.

He said Mr. Brownfield is well-suited for his new post through both his diplomatic skills and his background as the son of a west Texas rancher who started in the oil fields.

Mr. Brownfield is the former U.S. ambassador to Chile, and his wife, Kristie Kenney, is U.S. ambassador to Ecuador.

12Next »

Post a comment

There are comments on this article, submit your opinion!

Commenting is disabled for this entry.
If you feel there is still something worth mentioning about this entry please contact the author or the site admin.

Top Stories

Most Read

  1. Stimulus foes see value in seeking cash
  2. Va. Senate OKs ban on sexual orientation bias
  3. Another storm approaches Mid-Atlantic
  4. Obama's bipartisan call hits wall of dissent
  5. Ayatollah: Iran's military will 'punch' West
More Top Stories »
  1. LYNCH: Drug czar should go
  2. Clinton: Islamist terror is No. 1 threat
  3. Md. may fine for piercing minors without parental OK
  4. Army warned about jihadist threat in '08
  5. Inside the Beltway

Most Shared

  1. Stimulus foes see value in seeking cash
  2. Army warned about jihadist threat in '08
  3. BLANKLEY: Palin delivers sparkle, warmth
  4. STEYN: The 'corpseman' cometh
  5. Drive down debt, or we will be driven down
More Top Stories »
  1. Ayatollah: Iran's military will 'punch' West
  2. PRUDEN: Hatching the Silly Bowl
  3. New federal office for global warming
  4. Obama's bipartisan call hits wall of dissent
  5. EDITORIAL: Free the Baptist 10 in Haiti

Most Commented

  1. Obama's bipartisan call hits wall of dissent
  2. Palin: President run may be 'right thing'
  3. New federal office for global warming
  4. Clinton: Islamist terror is No. 1 threat
  5. BLANKLEY: Palin delivers sparkle, warmth
More Top Stories »
  1. Rep. Murtha dies at age 77
  2. Prop. 8 trial stirs questions, emotions
  3. EDITORIAL: Free the Baptist 10 in Haiti
  4. Ayatollah: Iran's military will 'punch' West
  5. Obama rejects starting over on health care

Listen to Washington Times Radio

  • America's Morning News

    with John McCaslin

Blogs & Columns

  • Hot Button Blog

    White House communications chief to treat Fox differently than ABC, NBC

  • Belief Blog

    Anglican day of reckoning coming

  • Out of Context

    Foods that might kill libido

  • On the Fly

    United lifts some 'award' blocking

  • Technology

    (Almost) All about Apple's iPad

  • Redskins 360

    This is goodbye ... for now

  • SNOBlog

    Beyond 'Woody'

Advertising Links
TWT Store
  • e-edition
  • Print Edition
  • Weekly Washington Times
TWT Affiliates
  • Middle East Times
  • Golf
  • UPI
  • Arbor Ballroom
  • Washington Times Global
  • About TWT
  • Press Room
  • F.A.Q.
  • Work for TWT
  • Advertise
  • Sponsors
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Site Map

All site contents © Copyright 2009 The Washington Times, LLC.