Venezuela hosts meeting before Summit of the Americas

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Source: CCTV.com | 04-17-2009 08:58

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Meanwhile, Venezuela President Hugo Chavez says he will vote against the declaration of the Summit of the Americas in a gesture of protest against the US.

Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, right, and Cuba's President Raul Castro, left, joke prior to the official photo during the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas, or ALBA, Summit in Cumana, Venezuela, Thursday, April 16, 2009.(AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

Chavez made the remarks during a warm-up meeting prior to the weekend summit.

Venezuela and other members of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Nations of Our America, know as ALBA, discussed their positions on Thursday.

Chavez says the upcoming summit reinforces a US foreign policy that treats the rest of Latin America as subservient to Washington's interests. He also argues that Cuba should not be excluded from the summit.