'George Bush is the devil'
New York - Venezuela's outspoken President Hugo Chavez called United States President George W Bush "the devil", "a liar" and a "tyrant" in a scathing attack before the United Nations general assembly on Wednesday.
"Yesterday, the devil came here and this place still smells of sulphur," Chavez said, referring to Bush's speech at the assembly on Tuesday.
"He came here talking as if he were the owner of the world."
Chavez launched a virulent attack on what he called US "hegemony" and renewed calls for drastic reform of the UN to reduce the US influence.
His speech was warmly applauded. It was the second anti-Bush tirade at the assembly in two days, following Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad speech on Tuesday.
'Democracy of bombs'
Chavez quoted at different times leftwing US intellectual Noam Chomsky, Greek philosopher Aristotle and film director Alfred Hitchcock. He also called Bush "a liar" and "a tyrant."
"We cannot allow world dictatorship to be consolidated," he told the assembly.
US "imperialism," he added, was "a threat to the survival of the human race."
Bush promoted "a false democracy of the elite" and a "democracy of bombs," he declared.
Bush's vision of democracy was worthy of a Hitchcock thriller which he said should be called "The Devil's Recipe."
The left-wing Venezuelan president is a frequent critic of the US administration, which he accuses of backing a plot to overthrow him. He renewed the accusation during the speech.
Washington considers Chavez, a close ally of Communist Cuba, to be a destabilising influence in Latin America - even as the United States is a major consumer of Venezuelan oil.
When asked about Chavez' speech, US national security spokesman Frederick Jones said: "Not worthy of reaction. Not worthy of comment."
Chavez has been pressing for Venezuela to get a seat on the 15-member UN security council when a vote is held in October.
Like Ahmadinejad, he called for drastic change to the world body to reduce the influence of the United States and other permanent members.
Wants end to the veto
Chavez said the UN headquarters should be moved away from New York, and suggested that even Venezuela would be a better place.
He called for an expansion of the security council, more effective means to handle world conflicts and greater powers for the secretary-general.
He also called for an end to the veto of any resolution for the permanent members: the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France.
"The UN system born after the second world war has collapsed, it is worthless," said Chavez.
News source: www.news24.co.za
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