Chavez demands Spanish king apology

“I’m not going to ask him to get down on his knees, but to in some way recognise that he went too far, that he did something inappropriate.”

Since King Carlos’ outburst against Chavez, the Venezuelan leader has said that the Latin American country doesn’t necessarily need Spanish investment.

 

He has mentioned that Spanish banks Banco Santander SA and Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA, which both operate in Venezuela, will be held more accountable.

 

‘Like an Indian’

 

Chavez said he wants recognition from Spain that it was at fault, despite suggestions from Spanish diplomats that the matter be solved in a spirit of mutual respect.

 

King Carlos told Chavez to ‘shut up’ after he called Aznar a ‘fascist’ [AFP]

“I don’t want this to keep growing more serious, but the king or the Spanish government should in some way recognise that they were the ones at fault and that they attacked us,” Chavez said.

The Venezuelan president has said that Aznar supported a coup that briefly ousted him from office in 2002.

After King Carlos shouted at him at the summit in Chile, Chavez suggested the monarch could also have had knowledge of the coup.

He said on Friday that during the coup the Spanish ambassador recognised the interim leader who became president for a brief time before Chavez took power back.

“Could it be that the king knew about the coup too and gave the green light?” Chavez said, suggesting Spain‘s ambassador must have had the king’s support.

The Venezuelan president said he didn’t hear the king during the heated exchange at the summit, because he was focused on responding to Zapatero.

“The king was lucky,” Chavez said. “If I had heard him, I might have answered him … shot an arrow at him like an Indian.”