Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez will arrive in Ukraine on Oct.18 for his first visit to the country, the head of the presidential administration of Ukraine Sergiy Liovochkin told a pool of journalists on Oct. 13.
"Hugo Chavez will pay a two-day official visit," Liovochkin said.
Chavez is a fervent opponent of U.S. foreign power and sees many of the countries on his itinerary as sharing his goal of lessening Washington’s dominance in world affairs. He is renowned for his flamboyant public speaking style, which he puts to use in his weekly live TV program.
The first stop of his 10-day trip will be Moscow, where an agreement to develop nuclear energy, the purchase of Russian tanks and a bi-national bank are all on the agenda. Chavez will also visit Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko, who is widely regarded as the last dictator in Europe.
Chavez’ visit to Kyiv is aimed at improving cooperation with the people and government of the Ukraine, according to Venezuelan news agencies. Business is also on the agenda.
Ukraine is scheduled to pump a trial consignment of the Venezuelan oil to the Mozyr Oil Refinery via the Odessa-Brody and Druzhba oil pipelines. The go-ahead was given on Oct. 12 in a session of Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers upon the recommendation of Fuel and Energy Minister Yuri Boiko.
Venezuelan political analysts think that their president’s tour of East Europe, which starts 15 days after parliament election, cannot be separated from the election results and the expropriation of Venezuelan and foreign companies announced by the Venezuelan president in the last few days.
Professor Demetrio Boersner, an expert in foreign affairs and former Venezuelan ambassador to Bucharest, Stockholm and Vienna, told the Caracas-based El Universal newspaper that the visit "is intended to shape a political image rather than to seek specific agreements."
In the same article, published on Oct. 12, foreign affairs expert Carlos Romero explained what the Venezuelan president wants to convey during the trip. "He wants to reiterate Venezuela’s international commitment with countries that, from a global perspective, are considered opponents of the United States. This is his response to the domestic political situation. He wants to show that election results do not force the government to adopt a less radical foreign policy that takes into account the other half of the country and reflects Venezuela’s general interest."
