Uribe and Chavez trade insults as Venezuela freezes ties

Nov 26, 2007, 0:35 GMT

Caracas/Bogota - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Sunday said he had 'frozen' diplomatic relations with Spain and Colombia after a series of prominent spats with the leaders of the two countries.

Chavez called Colombian President Alvaro Uribe a 'liar and cynic' for relieving the Venezuelan leader of his mediating role in hostage talks with Colombian rebels.

Uribe responded in Bogota that Chavez wanted to set the Latin American continent 'on fire' to push through his 'expansionist' policies.

Chavez also said relations with Spain would be on hold until King Juan Carlos apologized for telling him to 'shut up' at an Iberian- American summit in Chile earlier this month. Carlos' comments came after Chavez had called former Spanish prime minister Jose Maria Aznar a 'fascist.'

'I have lost confidence in the Colombian government, I trust nobody anymore,' Chavez said in Maracaibo.

Chavez had been negotiating a prisoner swap with the leftist Colombian guerilla group FARC, but was stripped of his duties after speaking directly with the head of Colombia's military - something that had been expressly forbidden by Uribe.

The freeze in relations would have political and economic effects. Chavez said he was also keeping a watchful eye on US troops stationed in Colombia.

Uribe held nothing back in his response to Chavez's move.

'Your behaviour gives the impression that you do not care about peace in Colombia, and you would rather make Colombia a victim of a terrorist FARC government,' Uribe told Chavez.