Politics
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Venezuelan counterpart, Hugo Chávez, exchanged praise and reaffirmed their brotherhood "against imperialist threats."

Chávez welcomed the Iranian leader, calling him an "anti-imperialist gladiator," and a "brother and friend" in the struggle of "two free countries" (against imperialism). Meanwhile, Ahmadinejad described Chávez as a "brave brother," and a man "who resists like a mountain."

For his part, Chávez advocated Ahmadinejad, who "has been attacked by the Western (mass) media."

The Venezuelan ruler accused the media of "saying nothing" to what he considered a threat from Israeli President Shimon Peres. "Peres said that Chávez and Ahmadinejad would fall soon (...) what the Israeli President said we take as a threat and we will act accordingly," Chávez highlighted.

He insisted "it is a threat and we know that the State of Israel stands for a murderous arm of the Yankee empire."

María Lilibeth Da Corte
EL UNIVERSAL