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Tuesday, May 30, 2024
By Steven L. Taylor

Via CNN comes a headline that one doesn’t really want to see: Chavez buying weapons, planes

Venezuela is buying helicopters, boats and military transport planes in defense deals worth about $2.7 billion, modernizing its military as tensions grow between leftist President Hugo Chavez and the United States.

Given that there really are not serious security threats to Venezuela, this strikes me as an attempt by Chávez to stoke the fires of nationalism. Certainly there are better uses of the money, given the poverty problems in Venezuela–ones Chávez had promised to fix.

Yes, there have been some FARC activity in the Colombian border, and some kidnapping problems as well. However, I don’t think that a $2.7 billion investment in military hardware in the answer to those problems.

This is especially true if he is looking to buy things like submarines:

A cargo ship carrying 30,000 Russian-made Kalashnikov assault rifles is headed to Venezuela with the first shipment of an order totaling 100,000 guns to arrive by year’s end. The military is looking to buy more submarines, and Chavez is planning an even bigger deal for Russian fighter jets.

No, this is military nationalism plain and simple:

“The United States is failing in its attempt to blockade us, to disarm us,” Chavez said after announcing the first shipment of Kalashnikovs.

The goal is to paint the US as the great imperialist badie and then show how only he can protect the people of Venezuela. It is not a new tactic in the history of the world, to be sure.

It is a troubling development in the ongoing saga of what was once a rather democratic country.

The investment is pretty steep:

Venezuela’s defense budget is up 31 percent this year, to $2 billion, and that doesn’t include roughly $2.2 billion it plans to spend for 10 transport planes and eight patrol boats on what will be Spain’s largest-ever defense deal.

Chavez says the spending is necessary to keep the military up to date and to obtain “minimal arms for the defense of our seas, land and airspace.”

I guess you never know when the hordes from Guyana might start pouring in. And one always needs to be vigilant from possible sea attack from Aruba.

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3 Responses to “Chávez on Military Buying Spree”

  • el
  • pt
    1. talmadge East Says:

      I think Chavez’s build up is probably for political gain and to instill a sense of national pride in the Venezuelan people.

    2. Dr. Steven Taylor Says:

      Hence “nationalism”.

    3. Pros and Cons Says:

      Northern Latin America, in the news.

      Poliblogger reacts to the reaction to Alvaro Uribe’s latest electoral romp, 62% of the vote in a multi-way race. Compassionate conservatism works and remains tremendously popular … in Colombia. Maybe if Bush’s opponents did more than…


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