Chavez Slams Very Bad Signals from Obama to Iran

Source: Agencies, 25-11-2008
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, a fierce critic of the United States, late Monday slammed "very bad signals" from US president-elect Barack Obama that he said were "disrespectful" to Iran.
Iranian President "Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sent him a letter. The reply wasn't good. It was disrespectful. Obama was unable to get away from the cliché. He spoke like (President George W.) Bush. They are very bad signs," Chavez said in a late night news conference to foreign journalists.
Obama told his first news conference after winning the US presidential election on November 4 that Iran's alleged pursuit of nuclear weapons was "unacceptable." He also said that he would "respond appropriately" to a congratulatory letter from Ahmadinejad.
The United States is "the empire that kills, bombs and assassinates. If Obama can convert that infernal machine into a machine that benefits the world, I think that would be a lot to hope for," Chavez said. In his statement Chavez also said the issue of withdrawing US troops from Iraq would indicate Obama's mettle. "That will be a test to see where Obama's coming from," he said, adding that to do so Obama would come up against the "imperialist machine."
Chavez also called on the incoming US president, who takes office on January 20, to alter US policy on Cuba. During his presidential campaign Obama expressed a desire to revise ties with the communist island. "We're going see if it's true. Do it and we would applaud," said Chavez, urging Obama to lift the four-decades old US trade embargo on Cuba. "We only aspire respect."
Chavez said he hoped the incoming first black US president "surrounds himself with good advisors, honors his color, his origin, remembers where he comes from. His wife is black, what beautiful children they have." "Hopefully they're not going to kill Obama, but that murdering machinery is capable of anything," Chavez added. The firebrand leader has tightened ties with Iran in recent years, and has referred to Ahmadinejad as a "brother."