Brazil’s Lula defends South America arms buildup, including Venezuelan purchases

September 30th, 2009 South American nations agree to start $20B bankPORLAMAR, Venezuela — Seven South American nations on Saturday signed an agreement to create a Bank of the South with startup capital of $20 billion. The development bank has been touted by socialist Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez as a counterweight to U.S.-influenced international lenders and the region's finance ministers in May agreed to fund it with $7 billion.

September 30th, 2009 Heavyweights join lobbying for 2016 OlympicsCOPENHAGEN — Spain's king, Brazil's president and First Lady Michelle Obama are converging on Copenhagen for a final push to convince the International Olympic Committee to award the 2016 Olympics to their respective cities. In the last 48 hours before Friday's IOC vote, lobbying efforts are shifting into high gear.

September 30th, 2009 Rio puts President Lula at heart of Olympic bidCOPENHAGEN — Rio de Janeiro's bid to host the 2016 Olympics put Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva at the center of its campaign Tuesday. Sidestepping questions about the effect President Barack Obama's presence could have on Chicago's bid, Rio's team said Silva had 80 percent approval ratings in Brazil.

September 28th, 2009 PORLAMAR - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva here said that it "does not accept ultimatums from a coup-making government". He was talking about the 10 days ultimatum given by the present Honduran government for clearing the status of expelled Honduran president Mel Zelaya who is holed up in the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa.

September 23rd, 2009 Brazil's president defends Iran's nuclear programNEW YORK — Brazil's president said Wednesday that Iran is entitled to the same rights as any other country to use nuclear energy for peaceful ends. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Wednesday that Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad assured him in meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly that his country's nuclear program was intended solely for peaceful purposes and that he had no reason to doubt him.

September 14th, 2009 US worried about Venezuelan arms buildupWASHINGTON — A U.S. official said Monday that Venezuelan arms acquisitions could spark an arms race in Latin America and he also expressed misgivings about the country's possible nuclear ambitions.

September 7th, 2009 BRASILIA - Brazil and France have signed a major arms pact worth billions of dollars that includes transfer of key military technologies, building of submarines and purchase of helicopters. The agreement was sealed after a meeting between French President Nicolas Sarkozy and his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva here Monday.

July 15th, 2009 Paulson defends work as treasury secretaryWASHINGTON — Former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has said in written testimony that the Bush administration's response to the financial crisis late last year was "not perfect" but "saved this nation from great peril." Paulson also defended his role in Bank of America Corp.'s decision to acquire Merrill Lynch, despite Merrill's troubled financial state. Paulson said the merger was in the best interest of the nation and the two firms and that remarks he made during discussions of the deal were "appropriate." Some House lawmakers have accused Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke of pressuring Bank of America officials to proceed with the merger despite mounting losses at Merrill Lynch that ultimately hurt Bank of America stockholders.

July 3rd, 2009 SC senator defends ouster of Honduran presidentWASHINGTON — South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint is defending the ouster of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya and says the rule of law is working in Honduras.

June 28th, 2009 Chavez to US general: You're the threat, not usCARACAS, Venezuela — President Hugo Chavez says a U.S. general shouldn't be raising concerns that Venezuela is buying arms, and the American commander is wrong to argue there isn't a "conventional military threat in the region." Chavez says the U.S.

June 27th, 2009 Venezuelan ambassador arrives in WashingtonCARACAS, Venezuela — Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's ambassador returned to Washington on Friday as the nations moved to repair strained diplomatic ties, but the sides are not completely ready to bury the hatchet. Upon arriving in the United States, Venezuelan Ambassador Bernardo Alvarez called the countries' decision to restore top-level diplomatic envoys the "first step in normalizing relations." U.S.

March 15th, 2009 WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama said his country has lot to learn from Brazil in the field of renewable energy and would utilise that opportunity to build close ties with other Latin American countries. Obama has promised to redouble his country's efforts to use clean energy during talks with his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva at the White House Saturday, EFE reported.

February 5th, 2009 RIO DE JANEIRO - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has said that he prays for US President Barack Obama to be successful in his efforts to overcome the ongoing economic and financial crisis. 'I pray for him more than I pray for myself, that he may find a way out for the United States.

January 19th, 2009 BRASILIA - Outgoing US President George W. Bush called Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to say goodbye Monday, Brazil's presidential spokesman Marcelo Baumbach said.

January 16th, 2009 MACHIQUES - Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has called on US president-elect Barack Obama to chart a new course of relations with Latin America, EFE news agency reported. Obama, who takes office next week, needs to maintain an egalitarian relationship with Latin America, said Lula who met his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez in Machiques, a town in the western Venezuelan state of Zulia Friday.