Chavez to buy Russian helicopters after Brazil deal falls through

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said Monday he would buy Russian helicopters after a deal with Brazil was blocked by the U.S. government.

"We wanted to buy some Brazilian training aircraft for our pilots ... the U.S. has stopped that operation," Chavez told an audience at a demonstration of the first three Russian-made helicopters his government had purchased. "We are ready to buy Russian fighters to have them here defending the skies."

Army Commander Gen. Raul Baduel said the military planned to buy a total of 20 Mi-17s, 10 Mi-35s and three Mi-26T from Russia to be used in defense as well as anti-drug patrols along the border with Colombia.

"The deal with Brazil fell through because the Brazilian company uses American technology," said Chavez. Venezuela would switch to Russian helicopters, he said, adding that his arms purchases were purely for defense and posed no international threat.

The U.S. government, which accuses Chavez of undermining regional democracy, has blocked Venezuela's recent arms purchases, while Chavez has made claims that the U.S. was planning to invade Venezuela to seize its oil reserves.

Though the U.S. government dismisses Chavez's remarks as ridiculous, Chavez insists that Venezuela, the world's No. 5 oil exporter, should be prepared for "wars of resistance, anti-imperialist war."

Source: Xinhua