Tag : Chinese energy

By Emma Graham-Harrison
BEIJING, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Venezuela expects a first shipment ofChinese military training planes to arrive next year, but thepurchase is only a tiny part of a relationship based on finance andenergy, President Hugo Chavez said on Thursday.
The staunch leftist said he was pushed into the deal for 24 K-8craft because Venezuela's ideological foe, the United States, hadrefused to sell him spare parts for old American planes and sopilots risked their lives when training.
He lambasted journalists for focusing too much on military tiesbetween socialist nations he said were simply looking to sharetheir assets to bolster growth.
"I notice that every time I come here some international media tryto minimize aspects such as commerce," he said.
"(The military deal) for us is not the most important thing. Whatare important are finance and energy."
Military links have been in focus because ties with the UnitedStates are particularly stormy, and Chavez's next stop on awhirlwind global tour will be Moscow where he is likely to discussjoint manoeuvres planned for November.
Chavez used his fifth visit to China to cement ties with theworld's number two oil consumer, as he looks to reduce atraditional reliance on energy markets in the United States.
The two countries signed a slew of deals to boost oil sales, builda new refinery and tanker fleet, and expand by $6 billion a jointinvestment fund.
But Chavez said Venezuela still had more than enough oil to keepshipments steady to the United States, and was only looking toChina for extra markets as it expands production.
China is also keen to play down the politics of the relationshipand any fears of military menace.
"From the Chinese side, I can confirm once again that during thisvisit by President Chavez, the two sides did not talk aboutcooperation in military areas,"Liu Jianchao, Chinese foreignministry spokesman, told a news conference. (Editing by NickMacfie)