BEIJING - President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela said his country is no longer the backyard of the United States and that he finds it more important to visit Beijing than New York, as he arrived yesterday in China's capital on the first leg of an international tour.
The outspoken US critic hopes to boost ties with China's communist leadership through increased oil sales, partly to reduce dependency on the United States, which still buys about half of Venezuela's oil despite years of tensions.
"China is showing the world and has shown the world that it isn't necessary to harm anyone to be a great power," Chávez told reporters upon his arrival in Beijing. "They're soldiers of peace."
Indeed they are: Blessed Are the Peace-Makers
After China, Chávez will travel to Russia for his second visit in about two months, to be followed by stops in Portugal and France.--more--"
