Chavez, Qaddafi Call for African-South American NATO at Summit

By Matthew Walter and Daniel Cancel

Sept. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi called for the creation of a southern hemisphere alliance mirroring the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, to counteract the influence of the U.S. and Europe.

They spoke yesterday at the second South America-Africa Summit in Venezuela, where Chavez brought together 30 heads of state including Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil, Zimbabwe’s Robert Mugabe and Algeria’s long-time leader Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

“For African countries it’s closer to visit our brothers in South America and we share the same interests of liberation and revolutionary ideals,” Qaddafi said. “Colonialism humiliated us, insulted us and robbed us of our riches.”

Hosting the summit plays into Chavez’s goal of diminishing what he calls “imperial” influences and boosting ties with allies including members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries Angola and Nigeria.

The more than 60 delegations planned to sign accords on trade, energy, mining and agriculture, Venezuela’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

“A new world has already emerged, and it’s a new world that’s marching toward multipolarity,” Chavez told reporters at the United Nations on Sept. 23. “We have great expectations.”

Qaddafi, who travels with an extensive delegation, pitched his trademark tent next to the pool at the Hilton Hotel on the Caribbean tourist island of Margarita, where the summit is taking place.

Chavez, Qaddafi Met

Chavez met with Qaddafi on the night of Sept. 25 inside the tent which is decorated with images of palm trees and camels, according to images broadcast on state television.

Invitees included Sudanese President Umar Al-Bashir, who has been accused of war crimes in Darfur. Chavez in March called the International Criminal Court’s arrest warrant for Al-Bashir a “mockery,” and said former U.S. President George W. Bush should be arrested instead.

Brazil’s Lula, who attended the summit ahead of a quarterly meeting with Chavez, is also seeking closer ties with Africa. Lula has built factories to produce anti-viral drugs in Africa, sent missions to teach irrigation farming on the continent and opened 17 African embassies since taking office in 2003.

Lula and Chavez are competing for popularity and influence across Latin America, and the contest has extended to other parts of the world including Africa, said Riordan Roett, director of western hemisphere studies at the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

‘Quiet Diplomacy’

“Chavez’s approach is of the moment, to capture headlines,” Roett said in a telephone interview. “Brazil has been engaging in pragmatic ties, through quiet diplomacy.”

The South America-Africa Summit was the second of its kind. The first was held in 2006 in Abuja, Nigeria.

Chavez has used regional summits to make rhetorical arguments about increased “south-south” cooperation, Roett said. The summit isn’t likely to cause concern for the U.S., he said.

Chavez said Sept. 26 the final declaration of the summit will seek to set a concrete agenda of cooperation to follow during the next 10 years.

Rafael Ramirez, Venezuela’s oil and energy minister, said the delegations would discuss energy cooperation and that Venezuela is still studying the possibility of building a refinery in Mauritania.

“We’re working on agreements to develop refineries, boost storage capacity and cooperation on joint projects,” Ramirez told reporters. “Africa and South America have 24 percent of the hydrocarbons in the world.”