**South American leaders have threatened to pull out of a scheduled EU-Latin American summit in Spain if Honduras President Porfirio Lobo attends.**Leaders of the 12-nation South American Unasur bloc, including Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez and Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, urged Spain to uninvite Mr Lobo.
The Honduran leader was voted into power last year, following a coup which was denounced across Latin America.
Regional powers expressed their support for ousted President Manuel Zelaya.
Earlier this week the Spanish government, which currently holds the EU presidency, invited the Honduran leader to the EU-Latin America summit, scheduled to begin on 18 May.
“There is unease shared by most of us that will prevent a lot of Unasur countries attending the summit,” said Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, according to AFP news agency.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez added: “We don’t want to boycott the summit. We want Spain to come to its senses.”
An aide to Brazilian leader Lula da Silva, Marco Aurelio Garcia, said: “If Honduras attends, then at least 10 Latin American presidents will not go to Madrid, starting with the president of Brazil.”
The Unasur bloc was formed nearly two years ago to boost unity among the region’s powers and counterbalance the perceived influence of the US.
But correspondents say its goals of development and democracy-building remain far off.
Unasur is made up of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay and Venezuela.This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
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