Chinese radars pass acid test in VENBRAS joint anti-drug maneuver between Venezuela and Brazil

Chinese radars that have been recently installed in Venezuela passed their acid test in the VENBRAS joint anti-drug maneuver, between Venezuela and Brazil, recently developed in this country. Installing Chinese radars in Venezuela fills the gap left by the withdrawal of similar US installations, in the context of the US government pressures put on Hugo Chavez. Military sources said the radars, with an over-248-mile radius, were placed for the first time in the country's southern area, where the Venezuelan, Colombian and Brazilian borders meet. To both countries, it is essential to fight drugs, mostly cocaine, which comes from Colombia, the main world producer of a product devoted to the markets in the United States and Europe, the greatest consumers of illegal substances. Over 400 troops from Venezuela and Brazil were mobilized for the joint operation at the Santa Elena de Uairen air force base in the Venezuelan Bolivar state. Division Gen. Slain Longa, commander of the Venezuelan delegation, asserted that the JLDU radars are tools of a new generation that allow visualizing the situation in 200 nautical miles around. Brazilian Mayor Carlos Baruffaldi, of Brazil's air force, insisted on statements to the media on the importance of fighting jointly illegal actions that affect sovereignty of Venezuela and Brazil.