Venezuela's populist president Hugo Chavez has suggested that the political party of German chancellor Angela Merkel shared the ideals of Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler. Chavez accused Merkel of urging Latin American leaders to avoid ties with his government. He said Merkel was a member of the Christian Democratic Union, "the same right wing that supported Hitler and fascism". Chavez was on the verge of launching more insults, but suddenly stopped short. "Mrs. Chancellor, you can go to." After pausing for a moment, he added: "Because you are a lady, I won't say more."
Reacting to the diatribe, a German government spokesman quoted Merkel as saying: "President Chavez does not speak for Latin America." European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso called the German chancellor a "great democrat," and - in a clear reference to Chavez - said that "inflammatory, populist and aggressive" remarks go against efforts to increase cooperation between Europe and Latin America.