It was roughly a year ago that King Juan Carlos of Spain and Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez faced off during the infamous “¿Por qué no te callas?” tiff. Both leaders kissed and made up in July during Chavez’ visit to Spain. But could a photo-op hurt their relationship again?A top aide to Venezuela's president criticized Spain's King for rubbing shoulders with owners of Venezuela's privately-owned and often anti-government media — even as he insisted that Venezuelan officials support free speech.Thus far there has been no official reaction from Spain. One hopes, however, that the king’s snapshots doesn’t result in a diplomatic spat between the European nation and Venezuela.
"Be careful who you pose with, King Juan Carlos," Information Minister Andres Izarra said, referring Venezuelan private press photos that showed the king posing with some of President Hugo Chavez's most outspoken critics.
Izarra dismissed concerns raised this week at a meeting of the Inter American Press Association, where Venezuelan newspaper and television network owners accused Chavez of harassing and intimidating the media.
Image- CBS News (“Spanish King Juan Carlos gestures towards Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez as Chavez got involved in a heated verbal exchange with Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, during the last working session of the XVII Iberoamerican Summit in Santiago, Chile, Nov. 10, 2007. King Juan Carlos said to Chavez, "Why don’t you shut up?"”)
Sources- The Latin Americanist, IHT
Diplomatic spats aren't intrinsically bad. Anything to drive a wedge between Spain and Chavez would be helpful to isolate Chavez and provide some coverage for moderate critics of his in Venezuela and the rest of the region.
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