VHeadline.com News Editor Patrick J. O'Donoghue writes:  Venezuelan Deputy Minister for Europe, Rodrigo Chavez has had his work cut out for him during a difficult diplomatic mission in Europe. 

Attending the 7th European Union (EU)/Latin American forum in Biarritz, the Deputy Minister has energetically protested remarks made by sophisticated EU commissioner for foreign affairs, Benita Ferrero-Waldner. 

• The commissioner told the forum that the EU is concerned about the resurgence of "certain populisms in Latin America" nurtured on "poverty and inequality." 

Ferrero-Waldner states that the EU is determined to reinforce Latin America's stability and the current situation is destabilizing what she calls the pillars of democratic systems ... "the risk of democratic involution exists."

Among governments characterized as neo-populist is the Venezuelan government.

Venezuelan opposition electoral command chief, Teodoro Petkoff was present at the forum on invitation to lobby for presidential candidate, Manuel Rosales. 

Minister Chavez has also questioned statements from the EU commissioner regarding indigenous minorities and majorities in Latin America, which she says the EU supports "as long as they respect the Constitution and the legal system."

During a visit to Brussels, Chavez met many EU bureaucrats and managed to get them to agree to hold a workshop to study the social and economic advances of the Bolivarian Revolution before a EU delegation visit Venezuela at the end of November.

The EU delegates are expected to visit several of the government's social programs, endogenous development projects, as well as discussing relations between Venezuela and the European Union, which incidentally has voted en bloc vs. Venezuela in the United Nations.