The OPEC oil ministers said the oil market was well-supplied and recent gains were due to speculation and beyond the group’s control. OPEC is scheduled to discuss oil production for the first quarter of 2008 at a meeting in Abu Dhabi on Dec. 5.

The Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal rejected calls by Iran and Venezuela at the summit to discuss abandoning the U.S. currency for oil sales, saying the kingdom doesn’t want the dollar to “collapse”, however also it showed his potential to generate problems to the United States and their allies.

During OPEC MEETING the oil leaders thought were private talks, Venezuela’s oil Minister Rafael Ramirez and his Iranian counterpart Gholamhossein Nozari, argued that pricing - and selling - oil using the crippled dollar was damaging the cartel, but the Saudis, the world’s largest oil producers and de facto head of OPEC, vetoed the proposal. The Prince Saud Al-Faisal, warned that even the mere mention to journalists of the fact that leaders were discussing the weak dollar would cause the US currency to plummet ( ¿$US dollar vs €Euro?). The alliance between Hugo Chávez and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been fortified with several visits of both parts: Chávez Monday arrived at Tehran by fourth time in two years. Iran has been associated with Venezuela in several industrial projects in the South American nation, including the manufacture of automobiles, energy, plastic tractors and products, but could be an interesting bridge/way to traffic with nuclear technology in another hand Hugo Chávez and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad want to use the Cartel, like a political weapon versus George Bush´s policy.

Read the Riyadh Declaration. The Third Summit of Heads of State and Government of OPEC

|Manuel Torres Laveaga

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The NAFTA Region is called to build a big energy plan to ensure its economy development. One of the most important advantages of the NAFTA against other economic region like MERCOSUR, ASEAN, APEC or European Community -the first of three pillars of the European Union- is the situation to only need seat to three people to talk (Canada, U.S.A. and Mexico).

The NAFTA members are considering to shared total of 64 liquefied natural gas import terminal proposals. But no yet, talking about a nucleoelectric program like an ¨extra tool¨ to mitigate climate change challenge for all North America. However any energy plan needs to be accompanied with a better security plan, no only to the new LNG terminals, need to be a security plan thinking to the present and future North American energy assets to Protect it from all kind of enemy of the United States of America, In another hand, we can think in Mexico, with its particularly problems with the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) and The Popular Revolutionary Army (EPR) they could be dangerous to the development of Mexico and its contribution to the region of North America. For above reason is a pleasure to have almost a Energy Working Group inside of the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America, that is a continent-level dialogue, to enhance security and economic cooperation in North America.

Could be this Security and Prosperity Partnership’s Dialogue the next step to the integration of North America?

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|Manuel Torres Laveaga