Russia lends Venezuela $2.2 bln to buy weapons

Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez attends his weekly broadcast ''Alo Presidente'' in Caracas September 13, 2009.

CARACAS (Reuters) - Russia has agreed to lend Venezuela over $2 billion to finance the purchase of weapons including tanks and advanced anti-aircraft missiles, Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez said on Sunday.

Chavez said the purchases agreed on a trip to Moscow last week included 92 tanks and the S-300 missile system, which is capable of shooting down fighter jets and cruise missiles.

"We have to thank the Russian government, which approved a $2.2 billion loan for arms spending," Chavez said on his weekly television show. He did not say how much the new weapons cost.

A major oil exporter, Venezuela's finances have suffered this year because of lower crude prices. Chavez said Venezuela needed to borrow the money for defense spending to avoid cuts in education and health.

In recent years, Venezuela has bought over $4 billion of weapons from Russia including 24 Sukhoi fighter jets. Critics say Venezuela is fueling an arms race in Latin America, but Chavez says he is modernizing the military for defensive purposes.

Venezuela is embroiled in a diplomatic crisis with Colombia over a deal to allow U.S. troops access to more bases in the neighboring country to fight drug traffickers and left-wing guerrillas.

Chavez, a fierce critic of U.S. foreign policy, says the Colombian bases plan could be used to launch an attack on Venezuela and increases the risk of war in South America.

"Let me be clear, Venezuela has no plans to invade anybody, or to be aggressive toward anybody," Chavez said on his show.

Last year, the former soldier ordered tanks to the border with Colombia in a dispute over a Colombian bombing raid in Ecuadorean territory.

ADVANCED MISSILES

Chavez, who visited Moscow last week, said Venezuela was now buying 92 Russian T-72 tanks along with several types of missiles to build an air defense system.

He mentioned the Buk-M2 and S-300 surface-to-air missile systems. The S-300, also known as the SA-20, is considered one of the most effective anti-aircraft systems and is capable of tracking 100 targets at once.

It can be used with missiles that have a range of about 125 miles and can engage six targets simultaneously.

"With these rockets it's going to be very difficult for foreign planes to come and bomb us," Chavez said.

It was not immediately clear when Venezuela would receive the new weapons.

Russia signed a contract in 2007 to supply Iran with the S-300 system but has dragged its feet delivering the weapons after the United States and Israel expressed fears it would be use to protect nuclear facilities from attack.

Last week Russia dismissed rumors that a ship supposedly loaded with timber that went missing in the Atlantic in July had really been carrying a cargo of S-300s for Iran.

Chavez repeated on Sunday his commitment to developing nuclear power for peaceful purposes with the help of Russia and reiterated he was opposed to nuclear weapons.

(Reporting by Frank Jack Daniel and Patricia Rondon, editing by Philip Barbara)