Argentine, Brazilian, Venezuelan leaders hold impromptu summit

The presidents of Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela held an impromptu summit late Monday in Buenos Aires to bolster what Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said was 'the main axis of South America'. Mr Chavez was an unexpected addition to what was meant to be a bilateral meeting scheduled between Argentine President Cristina Kirchner and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. After the brief meeting, Mr Chavez told a media conference he suggested to his counterparts that a mothballed plan to build a gas pipeline across South America be revived. 'I think it is the moment to bring that back', he said of the project, which would involve building a pipe 8,000 kilometres long at an estimated cost of US$23 billion (S$31.5 billion).