US 'participated in Venezuela coup' - vice president
Venezuela’s vice president has accused the United States of participating in a 2002 coup that briefly toppled President Hugo Chavez.
Jose Vicente Rangel made his comments while comparing the April 11, 2002 coup in Venezuela to the September 11, 1973 uprising that deposed Chilean president Salvador Allende.
He said both coups were acts of “terrorism” comparable to the September 11, 2001, attacks against America.
September 11 “is a date that represents terrorism for both the American and Chilean people”, Rangel said.
The Venezuelan coup “was in the same mould with the same characteristics as the one that happened in Chile. The same format, the same social sectors, the same group of treacherous generals and also the participation of the United States,” he added.
The vice president did not offer proof of his allegations. Washington has vehemently denied being involved in the Venezuelan coup.
There was no basis to the claim that the United States participated in the April 12-14 attempt against the Venezuelan government, a US State Department official said yesterday.
The State Department’s inspector general’s office carried out an investigation that found that the department acted appropriately and did nothing to encourage the coup, the official said.
Venezuela’s military ousted Chavez hours after the shooting deaths of 19 people during skirmishes between opposition marchers, pro-government protesters and security forces struggling to keep the two sides apart.
Two days later, loyal troops restored the Venezuelan leader to power after thousands of his supporters took to the streets in protest of an interim government that tossed out the constitution and dissolved congress.
The United States belatedly condemned the coup, initially blaming Chavez for his own downfall – a reaction that fuelled suspicion within the Venezuelan government of Washington’s involvement.
Shortly after regaining power, Chavez demanded the United States explain its reaction but stopped short of directly accusing Washington of involvement. He also demanded an explanation of the presence of two US military officials at the Fuerte Tiuna Military base in Caracas the day before and after his ousting. The US Embassy said the officials were only there to obtain information about troop movement.
Washington and Caracas have uneasy relations over Chavez’s friendship with Cuban president Fidel Castro, his outspoken opposition of US-led efforts to establish free trade in the Americas and his criticism of the war on Iraq.
