Washington's conduct in Venezuela coup questioned

US lawmakers today questioned Washington's conduct during the attempted coup in Venezuela, despite ardent denials by members …

US lawmakers today questioned Washington's conduct during the attempted coup in Venezuela, despite ardent denials by members of President George W. Bush's administration of any involvement.

Connecticut Democrat Mr Christopher Dodd, chair of the Senate's subcommittee on Western Hemispheric affairs, called himself "extremely disappointed" that the United States was slow to condemn the disruption of constitutional order in Caracas.

"I would be the last one to defend all of the decisions, or even any of the decisions for that matter and policies of President Hugo Chavez and his administration in Venezuela. But to stand silent while the illegal ouster of a government is occurring is deeply troubling," Mr Dodd said.

"I'm very concerned about what message it sends about our support for democracy there and around the world," added Democrat Mr Tom Daschle, the Senate majority leader.

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"I think that we've got to be supportive of democratic principles even when they choose to elect people we don't like."

Mr Chavez was restored to power on Sunday after a coup that lasted less than two days. A self-declared provisional government that had detained Mr Chavez collapsed Saturday, in the face of riots, international pressure and military opposition.

The United States expressed no sympathy for Mr Chavez after he was ejected from power, and did not explicitly reject the interim government that replaced him.

The White House and State Department have admitted they had contact in recent months with members of the Venezuelan opposition, but insist they communicated that Washington would not back a coup or other unconstitutional actions.

"We explicitly told opposition leaders that the United States would not support a coup," Bush's spokesman Ari Fleischer told reporters Tuesday.

Likewise, military officials "explicitly" told the chief of the Venezuelan armed forces, General Lucas Rincon, in December that Washington would not support a coup, the Pentagon said.

But recent criticism of Mr Chavez by Mr Bush, Secretary of State Mr Colin Powell and CIA chief Mr George Tenet, along with Washington's rush to blame the democratically-elected former paratrooper for his own downfall, have fanned suspicions that Washington played some behind-the-scenes role.

In October, when Mr Chavez denounced civilian deaths caused by the US bombing in Afghanistan, Mr Bush questioned his commitment to the fight against terrorism.

Later, Mr Powell and Mr Tenet voiced doubts about Mr Chavez's commitment to democracy, criticizing his trips to Cuba, Iraq and Libya. The State Department also made repeated calls for Caracas to respect democracy and freedom of the press.

AFP