Chávez issues oil price warning in London- by Daniel Dombey
Hugo Chávez, Venezuela's radical president, warned that "the English middle classes would have to stop using their cars" if the US attacked Iran, as oil would go to $100 a barrel or more.
Welcoming Mr Chávez to London, Ken Livingstone, the mayor, described president George W. Bush's administration as a "gangster regime". He said: "We salute you Mr President . . . Londoners stand with you, not with the oil companies and the oligarchs." Mr Chávez said he expected Iran would cut oil production if attacked by the US, adding: "We would do the same if we were attacked. We would cut off our oil." He went on: "If they attack Iran, I think it will be far worse than the situation is in Iraq." Washington's reluctance to condemn an abortive coup against Mr Chávez in 2002 and the Iraq war of 2003 have increased tensions between Venezuela and the US and UK. After Mr Blair called in February for Venezuela "to abide by the rules of the international community" and criticised the country's alliance with Cuba, Mr Chávez accused Mr Blair of "trying now to attack us from Europe".
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