By CHRISTOPHER TOOTHAKER, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 1 minute ago
CARACAS, Venezuela - **President Hugo Chavez ordered the U.S. ambassador to leave Venezuela in 72 hours and said he was immediately withdrawing his ambassador from Washington. **
Chavez said Thursday night that U.S. Ambassador Patrick Duddy is no longer welcome, just as his close ally Bolivia expelled the American envoy from La Paz a day earlier.
“They’re trying to do here what they were doing in Bolivia,” Chavez said, accusing Washington of trying to oust him.
“That’s enough … from you, Yankees,” he said during a televised rally, using an expletive.
The socialist leader said Venezuela’s ambassador to Washington, Bernardo Alvarez, would return to the U.S. “when there’s a new government in the United States.”
The move by Chavez brings relations with Washington to a new low and raises questions about whether the diplomatic clash could hurt trade. Venezuela is the fourth-largest oil supplier to the United States, and Chavez threatened on Thursday to cut off crude shipments “if there’s any aggression against Venezuela.”
Venezuela’s Chavez says US ambassador must leave - Yahoo! News
I used to disbelieve ‘If you rub shoulders with the fierce, it’ll rub off on ya’…now with this…I’m a believer.
Hugo Chavez: Ahmedinejad of the South?!
Will this decision effect Citgo Oil in any way?
