Venezulean President plans to visit China

Caracas,Venezuela, Aug 16: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said he is planning a trip that will include stops in China and Angola as he seeks to distance Venezuela from the United States and lobby for a seat on the United Nations Security Council.

Chavez, who promises a socialist revolution in his oil-producing nation, has been a thorn in the side of the United States by boosting ties with the rulers of Iran and Cuba.

''Within a few days now I'll be going to China, an important visit to China,'' Chavez announced in a speech yesterday.

A posting on a government Web site said Chavez was planning to visit Malaysia, China and Angola between August. 21 and Sept. 1. It was not clear if the trip would include other stops and the foreign ministry declined to provide details.

Chavez this month completed a two-week tour that included stops in Argentina, Belarus, Russia, Qatar, Iran, Vietnam, Mali and Benin to sign energy and military cooperation deals and garner support for Venezuela's U.N. Security Council bid.

It was not clear whether Chavez would visit North Korea, which was dropped from the itinerary of his last trip. But Chavez said last month he had received an invitation from Pyongyang and planned to visit the secretive communist state.

Venezuelans broadly support their leftist leader for spending billions of dollars in oil revenue on social development programs.

But critics say he has shown and authoritarian streak and the United States sees him as a threat to regional stability.

Chavez regularly accuses the United States of meddling in the affairs of other nations and recently withdrew Venezuela's envoy in Jerusalem to protest Israel's bombing of Lebanon.

Reuters