Venezuela Chavez: No Way To End US Need For Foreign Oil

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Thursday dismissed as implausible talk by U.S. presidential candidates of cutting dependence on oil from Venezuela and the Middle East. The leftist leader called on the next U.S. president instead to build a new relationship with Venezuela. "They want to free themselves of what? What we need to do is talk, we need to reach agreements. We need each other," Chavez said in televised remarks. Cutting back on foreign oil purchases "is easier said than done," he added. U.S. dependence on energy sources from countries such as Venezuela will only increase with time, Chavez said. "The U.S. has no way and no need to stop buying our oil. The U.S. is a great country." U.S. presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain have both promised to limit oil imports from countries they consider rogue regimes such as Venezuela. The Andean country is the fourth-largest crude supplier to the U.S., but Chavez regularly lambasts its largest client as an "evil capitalist empire" and has also publicly labeled President George W. Bush a "criminal." In his fiery speeches, Chavez has also threatened to cut off oil sales to the U.S. in case of an attack or invasion.