Matt Brown
9/26/08
On Friday, Setember 26th, in the city of Orenburg, Russian leaders Vladimir Putin and Dmitri Medvedev, and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, met and signed an energy agreement which aims to further strengthen the ties between their respective countries and decrease the influence of the United States on the oil and gas markets around the world. The agreement marks the next step in an alliance between the two countries that dates back to before 2005, when the Russian government began signing military contracts with the Venezuelans that include a supply of fighter jets, helicopters, and assault rifles, in a series of deals whose value at the present time amounts to more than $4.4 billion. The latest step in the arms deals is marked by Russia’s decision to grant Venezuela $1 billion in credit for their purchase of weaponry; the increasing amicability between the two countries has also been marked by more frequent meetings between the countries’ leaders---the most recent meeting marks the second time in two months that Chavez has visited Russia. In exchange for the arms, Venezuela has allowed Russia to deploy several squadrons of bombers to the South American country in reaction to America’s military support of Georgia, and it seems Russia intends to escalate, in the coming months, the number of troops stationed in the Western Hemisphere.
In light of America’s growing economic troubles and the impending recession, these deals might be seen to herald the end of the country’s dominance over financial markets and the global military domain; an increasing build-up of American forces near Russia and Russian forces in the Western Hemisphere might start to possess an eerily Cold-War-esque feeling, and it seems likely that an increase in diplomacy will be required by the next United States administration to ease strained relations.
http://www.kentucky.com/524/story/536182.html
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