Gaddafi calls for 'Nato' for Africa and South America

Published on Sunday 27 September 2009 23:14

LIBYAN leader Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi has called for a Nato-style defence alliance for Africa and South America, as leaders from the two continents agreed to link up to increase their economic and political clout.

Col Gaddafi and Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez, led about 30 other rulers in calling for stronger "south-south" ties at a two-day summit on Margarita Island, Venezuela, which ended yesterday.

During his first visit to Latin America, Col Gaddafi said on Saturday: "We have to form a Nato for the south. And that's not a terrorist action. We have a right."

He denounced the United Nations Security Council as an elite club.

Mr Chavez said Venezuela is looking into energy investments in Africa and called for joint mining projects, saying the two regions together had enormous potential.

"There will no longer be a unipolar world," he said, referring to United States dominance. "In the 21st century, the African Union and South America will be truly great powers."

Seven South American leaders signed an agreement to create a regional development bank with $20 billion in start-up capital. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said: "We're 65 countries with more than a billion inhabitants who want to be heard."

African leaders, including Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe, South Africa's Jacob Zuma and Algeria's Abdelaziz Bouteflika, met eight South American presidents, including Ecuador's Rafael Correa and Chile's Michelle Bachelet. They agreed to increase co-operation in energy, mining, finance, agriculture and other areas.