Russian leader embarks on Latin America tour
Posted: 22 November 2008 0711 hrs

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LIMA: Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Friday embarked on a four-nation Latin American tour seen as sending a defiant message to the United States at the close of the George W. Bush presidency.

The tour, including talks with the outgoing US leader, naval exercises off Venezuela and a visit to arch US foe Cuba, has evoked fears of renewed Cold War-style rivalry in Latin America, while attracting some ridicule from sceptics.

"The current level of cooperation could be broader than in the Soviet era. Latin America has already ceased to be the United States' backyard," a Russian diplomatic source told the Russian daily Kommersant.

"Now the region is following its own line, which gives Russia an opportunity to strengthen our position," said the official.

Medvedev starts his tour in Peru, meeting Bush at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, where Russia's anti-US stance and failure to join the World Trade Organization contrasts with the views of most members.

Officials said Medvedev and the outgoing US leader would discuss the global financial crisis, the August war in Georgia and the touchstone issue of US missile defence plans in eastern Europe.

Russia analysts say Moscow's quest for influence in Latin America is intended to counter US influence in the former Soviet satellites of eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia.

On Monday the Russian leader heads to Brazil, a key trading partner with which Russia is interested in joint energy projects.

On Wednesday, he goes to Venezuela for talks with President Hugo Chavez, a vocal critic of Washington, as Russian warships led by a nuclear-powered cruiser prepare for joint exercises in the Caribbean Sea.

Russian media say officials will also pursue arms and energy deals with Venezuela, which has already bought a slew of Russian weapons.

The weapons sales have prompted concern on the part of US ally Colombia that Venezuelan stockpiles could fall into the hands of leftist FARC rebels.

Lima-based analyst Alejandro Deustua, of the country's Diplomatic Academy, criticised Russia's military role in South America, saying it was time for Russia to "explain plainly to each South American country what their intentions are with these military exercises."

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov insisted Russian weapons sold in Latin America were defensive rather than offensive and that Russian moves were not aimed at "third countries" - a clear reference to the United States, RIA Novosti reported.

Medvedev rounds off his tour in Cuba, the flagship ally of the Soviet Union in the Cold War and the United States' communist arch-foe in the western hemisphere since the late 1950s.

Russian energy firms have been actively seeking projects in Latin America such as possible involvement in a planned South American gas pipeline.

A proposed Russian purchase of a major stake in Spanish energy company Repsol - a major player in the region - is likely to advance such goals.

But Medvedev's tour has drawn repeated sniping from the influential daily Kommersant, which said Russia's plans were falling apart as oil prices fell and Moscow's economic fortunes plunged.

The newspaper wryly noted Chinese President Hu Jintao had beaten Medvedev to the region on a tour this week and observed: "The Russian delegation headed by Medvedev may not be offered the most profitable contracts in Cuba but only those that don't appetise Chinese businessmen."

Latin America analyst Johanna Forman, of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, described as "ham-fisted" a trip crafted months before the November 4 election victory of a more conciliatory US president, Barack Obama.

"It's more an in-your-face approach that may not resonate when you have a new administration... The Russians are still fighting a war with Bush," she said.

- AFP/yb