June 19, 2006

 WASHINGTON- The Bush administration is lobbying to prevent Venezuela from
 securing an open seat on the U.N. Security Council because of concern that its
 leading South American rival could confound plans to step up pressure on Iran.

 Under United Nations rules, Latin American governments are entitled to pick a
 country from the region to fill the rotating seat that comes open next year.
 Venezuela has been campaigning for the post.

 But the Bush administration is urging Latin American countries to vote for a
 U.S. ally, Guatemala, instead, warning that the populist government of
 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez cannot be trusted on crucial issues such as
 Iran’s nuclear program, given its "disruptive and irresponsible behavior" in
 international organizations.

 Behind the scenes, U.S. officials have been applying pressure, even to close
 allies, Latin American diplomats say. For example, Washington has agreed to
 sell F-16 fighter jets to Chile, but are warning that Chilean pilots will not
 be trained to fly them if the government supports Venezuela’s Security Council
 bid, the diplomats said.

 U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other top State Department
 officials have been taking part in lobbying efforts.

 Relations between the U.S. and Venezuela have been rocky since Chavez won
 election in 1998 and deteriorated further during a failed coup attempt against
 him in 2002 that appeared to have the Bush administration’s support. Chavez
 frequently refers to President Bush as an idiot, supports fellow leftist
 candidates for top offices in Latin America and has sought closer ties with
 Cuba and Iran.

 As those tensions have increased, Latin American neighbors have worked hard to
 avoid taking sides. The Security Council issue, however, is making that
 impossible.

 "No one wants to choose between the United States and Venezuela, but that’s what
 it’s come down to," said a diplomat from one Western Hemisphere country, who
 spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject. The
 Americans "have made it quite clear this is a top priority."

 If Venezuela wins the rotating seat for the designated two-year term, it would
 be one of 15 members on the Security Council. Only the five permanent members
 have veto power, but each council member’s vote can be important in disputed
 issues. If Venezuela takes a stand opposing a U.S.-backed initiative, that
 could provide cover for other countries to do the same.

 In addition, Venezuela would serve a one-month stretch as president of the
 Security Council during its term, a position that would give it a role in
 setting the agenda. Such influence could be important if the Security Council
 next year debated whether to impose sanctions on Iran in the hope of forcing
 Tehran to abandon its nuclear ambitions.

 Iran is considering an international offer of incentives and talks that would
 include U.S. officials, but the Bush administration wants to leave options open
 for punitive measures through the U.N.

 U.S. officials think the question of whether the Security Council seat will end
 up going to Guatemala or Venezuela remains open. But some Latin American
 diplomats think Venezuela may have the upper hand.

 Caribbean countries, as well as Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina are
 expected to side with Venezuela. But Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Central
 American countries are leaning toward Guatemala, meaning the issue could wind
 up deadlocked.

 If there is no consensus by October, the issue will move to the U.N. General
 Assembly. Although the U.S. has been lobbying European and Asian allies, some
 Latin American diplomats think developing countries, which hold a General
 Assembly majority, are likely to go with Venezuela.

 "Everyone who wants to see balance in the Security Council, who wants to see the
 United States constrained, will vote for Chavez," said one Latin American
 diplomat, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the
 subject.

 Diplomats say U.S. officials have put special pressure on Chile, which has one
 of South America’s strongest economies and which has been a close U.S. trading
 and political partner.

 When Rice met with Chilean Foreign Minister Alejandro Foxley in Washington in
 April, she devoted most of the closed session to a discussion of the Security
 Council issue, Foxley told La Tercera, one of Chile’s largest newspapers.

 Rice was quoted as telling Foxley that the issue was "singular because it aims
 at the heart of U.S. interests." The U.S. would not understand a vote for
 Venezuela, she said, and warned that such a vote would lump Chile with a group
 of "losers" separated from the U.S., Mexico, part of Central America and most
 of Europe, the newspaper reported.

 Chile’s ambassador to the U.N., Heraldo Munoz, said that Chile was a strong but
 independent U.S. ally: It opposed Washington on Iraq, was poised to ratify the
 U.S.-opposed International Criminal Court and would make up its own mind about
 the Security Council seat. But he said he hoped Latin American countries could
 agree on a candidate to avoid a divisive vote.

 "We have not taken a decision yet," he said. "We will decide based on the merits
 of the candidates."

 Other U.S. officials also have spoken bluntly. Assistant Secretary of State
 Thomas A. Shannon, the top diplomat for Latin America, told reporters this
 month that Venezuela’s government did not play a constructive role in
 international organizations.

 "It has an agenda which is peculiar, which is not necessarily in relation to the
 organizations themselves and which always has a confrontational and conflictive
 edge," Shannon said.

 In contrast, he said, Guatemala has a history of working through the U.N., and
 has sent peacekeepers to a number of countries around the world.

 State Department spokesman Eric Watnick, asked about U.S. lobbying efforts, said
 the choice for the seat was "a crucial one" that would affect how well the
 Security Council could deal with such key issues as the Iran nuclear issue and
 the Darfur crisis in Sudan.

 "It should come as no surprise that we believe Venezuela would not contribute to
 the effective operation of the Security Council, as demonstrated by its often
 disruptive and irresponsible behavior in multilateral forums," he said.

 Francisco Javier Arias Cardenas, Venezuela’s ambassador to the U.N., said
 Guatemala’s candidacy "is not really its own. It does not defend or promote its
 aspirations and concerns, but it is rather endorsing foreign interests."

 In an e-mail response to questions, Arias Cardenas said this "shows a serious
 lack of respect from the United States to the other Latin American countries we
 are competing against."

 Any vote for Guatemala "is really going to the United States," he added.

 As some diplomats have begun looking for a compromise candidate, Chavez has
 declared he will not pull his country from consideration.

 "Venezuela is a candidate and it will not withdraw," Chavez said June 11 on his
 weekly television and radio show.

 He also announced plans to visit North Korea and Iran, two countries named by
 Bush as part of an "axis of evil."

 "We will soon be in North Korea, we will soon be in Tehran, deepening our ?
 strategic alliances," Chavez said on the broadcast.

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 Richter reported from Washington and Farley from the United Nations.