Chavez, Ahmadinejad blast ‘aggression’ in Libya, Syria

VENEZUELA: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad have denounced the West’s “imperialist aggression” in Libya and Syria, the foreign ministry in Caracas said Tuesday.

The statement by the two arch US foes comes amid a NATO air bombing campaign in Libya where rebels are seeking to oust strongman Moamer Kadhafi, and growing pressure from the West for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step aside.

During a telephone call late Monday, Chavez and Ahmadinejad “discussed the situation created by the imperialist aggression against Libya and Syria, and agreed to follow up on this issue and increase their efforts to achieve peace,” the Venezuelan foreign ministry said. AFP