Chavez says US using embassy to spy
ISN SECURITY WATCH (01/02/06) - An irate Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has accused the US of using its embassy in Caracas as a listen post, the latest of several allegations of espionage hurled at Washington.
"We have you infiltrated ambassador, don't move much because we are watching you," said the fiery Chavez, referring to US Ambassador to Venezuela William Brownfield.
"The military officers of the US Embassy are involved in espionage and we have them infiltrated," the president added.
"We even know where they eat their 'arepas reina pepeada' that those gringos love," he said, referring to a traditional Venezuelan dish made of fried cornmeal.
US Embassy officials told ISN Security Watch they have not received word from Venezuelan officials about the spying allegations.
Chavez has threatened, however, to arrest US Embassy officials caught spying.
US officials in Caracas would not comment on the matter when ISN Security Watch questioned them about the allegations on Tuesday.
The president's remarks follow last week's allegations that a group of Venezuelan military officers were passing along information to a navy attaché at the US mission in Caracas.
A group of active and retired military men have been detained for questioning, according to Vice President Jose Rangel. Others accused of providing intelligence to US were out of the country when the arrests were made, said Venezuelan officials.
"Some low-ranking officers were passing information to the Pentagon," Rangel said in a statement, adding it appeared "that some left the country".
The vice president did not specify what type of information was allegedly passed on to the US officers, but he did note the information involved "state secrets".
Venezuelan prosecutors are reportedly focusing their investigation on the US military attaché identified by the local media as John Correa.
Brian Penn, embassy press officer, told reporters last week the mission had "received no communication from the Venezuelan government on this issue", and noted that the mission considered it "an internal matter for Venezuela".
A US official at the embassy in Caracas told ISN Security Watch last week: "We (the embassy) do not comment on intelligence matters – we don't do it in Washington and we don't do it here."
This month’s allegations were the only time Venezuela has accused the US of engaging in espionage.
In August last year, Chavez accused the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) of using its officers in Venezuela as spies against his government. The DEA officers were in the country to investigate the trafficking of cocaine from Colombia across its porous jungle border with Venezuela and on to the US and Europe.
Though Chavez acknowledged Venezuela was a major transit point for shipping cocaine and other illegal drugs, he said the Venezuelan military had made significant strides in stopping the flow of illegal narcotics.
"The DEA was using the fight against drug trafficking as a mask, to support drug trafficking, to carry out intelligence in Venezuela against the government," Chavez said at the time.
Following the accusations, Chavez decided to end Venezuela's cooperation accord with the DEA, a move that caused much consternation in Washington.
"Under those circumstances we decided to make a clean break with those accords, and we are reviewing them," said the president.
Relations between Venezuela and the US have deteriorated significantly in the last six years since Chavez assumed office.
The leftist Chavez has often accused the Bush administration of meddling in local affairs and of playing a role in the short-lived coup of April 2002 that saw the president briefly deposed, an allegation Washington denies.
The US, meanwhile, accuses Chavez of trying to transform Venezuela into a Cuban-style socialist regime, sowing the seeds of radical liberalism throughout Latin America, and backing leftist armed rebel groups in Colombia - an allegation Chavez rejects.
(By Carmen Gentile in Rio de Janeiro)
"We have you infiltrated ambassador, don't move much because we are watching you," said the fiery Chavez, referring to US Ambassador to Venezuela William Brownfield.
"The military officers of the US Embassy are involved in espionage and we have them infiltrated," the president added.
"We even know where they eat their 'arepas reina pepeada' that those gringos love," he said, referring to a traditional Venezuelan dish made of fried cornmeal.
US Embassy officials told ISN Security Watch they have not received word from Venezuelan officials about the spying allegations.
Chavez has threatened, however, to arrest US Embassy officials caught spying.
US officials in Caracas would not comment on the matter when ISN Security Watch questioned them about the allegations on Tuesday.
The president's remarks follow last week's allegations that a group of Venezuelan military officers were passing along information to a navy attaché at the US mission in Caracas.
A group of active and retired military men have been detained for questioning, according to Vice President Jose Rangel. Others accused of providing intelligence to US were out of the country when the arrests were made, said Venezuelan officials.
"Some low-ranking officers were passing information to the Pentagon," Rangel said in a statement, adding it appeared "that some left the country".
The vice president did not specify what type of information was allegedly passed on to the US officers, but he did note the information involved "state secrets".
Venezuelan prosecutors are reportedly focusing their investigation on the US military attaché identified by the local media as John Correa.
Brian Penn, embassy press officer, told reporters last week the mission had "received no communication from the Venezuelan government on this issue", and noted that the mission considered it "an internal matter for Venezuela".
A US official at the embassy in Caracas told ISN Security Watch last week: "We (the embassy) do not comment on intelligence matters – we don't do it in Washington and we don't do it here."
This month’s allegations were the only time Venezuela has accused the US of engaging in espionage.
In August last year, Chavez accused the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) of using its officers in Venezuela as spies against his government. The DEA officers were in the country to investigate the trafficking of cocaine from Colombia across its porous jungle border with Venezuela and on to the US and Europe.
Though Chavez acknowledged Venezuela was a major transit point for shipping cocaine and other illegal drugs, he said the Venezuelan military had made significant strides in stopping the flow of illegal narcotics.
"The DEA was using the fight against drug trafficking as a mask, to support drug trafficking, to carry out intelligence in Venezuela against the government," Chavez said at the time.
Following the accusations, Chavez decided to end Venezuela's cooperation accord with the DEA, a move that caused much consternation in Washington.
"Under those circumstances we decided to make a clean break with those accords, and we are reviewing them," said the president.
Relations between Venezuela and the US have deteriorated significantly in the last six years since Chavez assumed office.
The leftist Chavez has often accused the Bush administration of meddling in local affairs and of playing a role in the short-lived coup of April 2002 that saw the president briefly deposed, an allegation Washington denies.
The US, meanwhile, accuses Chavez of trying to transform Venezuela into a Cuban-style socialist regime, sowing the seeds of radical liberalism throughout Latin America, and backing leftist armed rebel groups in Colombia - an allegation Chavez rejects.
(By Carmen Gentile in Rio de Janeiro)
posted by Marko at 2/01/2006 12:11:00 AM
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