The president of Venezuela charged the United States with 'meddling with the internal affairs’ of Bolivia, denied U.S. charges that Venezuela and Cuba were doing so, and criticized Great Britain for 'snatching’ the Malvinas [Falklands] from Argentina during its 500-year "imperialist assault."

Bolivians in the Capital La Paz Protest a Gas Deal With the United States

The president of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, held "imperialism" responsible for the internal crisis in Bolivia and accused the United States government of meddling with the internal affairs of that nation, in a speech to military forces on Friday night.

"They (the U.S.) are the guilty ones, for the imperialism that has gripped this continent like a plague for 200 years," he declared while at a ceremony to issue promotions to soldiers, who were all awarded vacations to Cuba

President Hugo Chavez

Earlier, the chief executive said that Washington "lies shamelessly" when it claims it has evidence that Venezuela and Cuba have intervened in the situation in Bolivia, an allusion to comments made on Wednesday by former U.S. deputy secretary of state for Western Hemispheric Affairs, Roger Noriega.

Bolivia has had three presidents in the last year, and was in the midst of a very unstable political situation until the designation of President Eduardo Rodriguez to replace Carlos Mesa by the Congress of that country.

In his speech, Chávez pressed the military to resist United States aggression, which he described as “a menace."

Map of the Malvinas [Falklands]

"The attitude of a true soldier and a citizen-patriot is that of resistance to the aggression of empire," he stressed.

The Chief of State presented the 38 Air Force graduates with trips to Cuba, where those being promoted will also meet with Cuban President Fidel Castro, who they should look upon as a “godfather.”

The gift, according to Chavez, is so that the soldiers will come to know, "the wonders of that beautiful island, where the people fight the same things we want and believe in."

'THE MALVINAS [FALKLANDS] ARE ARGENTINE'

A 1982 Cartoon Depicting the Dispute Between Margerat Thatcher and the U.N.

The Venezuelan President also said that the Malvinas [Falklands] Islands "are Argentine" and "were snatched" by one of the empires that "has whipped the continent like a plague."

"Those Malvinas are Argentine. Who can deny it?" emphasized Chávez, during a graduation ceremony at the Tiuna Military Fort, southwest of Caracas.

He pointed out that the Malvinas "were seized and Argentine soldiers were massacred by the imperialists after a 500-year assault," referring to the 1982 war between Great Britain and Argentina for control of the archipelago.

Chávez criticized the United States "for turning its back on Latin America by supporting the English aggression against Argentina, alone in doing so."

The Venezuelan President continued, adding that imperialism must be met with a "permanent attitude of resistance."