Israeli PM Said To Push Satellite Sale To Venezuela

TEL AVIV [MENL] -- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, in defiance of U.S.
wishes, was said to have secretly promoted the sale of satellite services to
Venezuela.
The Israeli daily Maariv said Olmert sought to facilitate the sale of
satellite services to Venezuela by the Israeli firm ImageSat. Olmert, the
newspaper said, was blocked by the Israeli Defense Ministry, which did not
want to spark a crisis with the Bush administration.
The prime minister, investigated on charges of bribery and tax evasion,
was said to have ordered an Israeli diplomat in Venezuela to facilitate the
ImageSat deal with the government of President Hugo Chavez. Olmert also sent
a letter to Columbia's defense minister in which the prime minister promoted
ImageSat, owned largely by Israel Aerospace Industries.
The United States has opposed Israeli military or satellite services to
Venezuela. Chavez has been regarded as a key ally of Iran.