Caracas - Venezuela's parliament has paved the way for a planned referendum on changes to the constitution that would allow President Hugo Chavez unlimited terms of office.

The National Assembly on Wednesday night approved in a second and final reading the referendum for a constitutional amendment that would allow not only Chavez, but all of Venezuela's governors, members of parliament and mayors to seek re-election over an unlimited period.

The national electoral council was due on Friday to set the date for the new referendum, which had been planned for February 15.

Caracas  - Venez

Caracas - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Tuesday called the Israeli Army "cowardly" for its offensive in the Gaza Strip, and said the people of Israel should protest the operation that has killed more than 580 people.

"How cowardly is the Israeli Army. They attack a people that is exhausted, asleep, innocent, and they boast that they are defending their people," Chavez told reporters. "I call upon the people of Israel to rise against that government."

Caracas/Havana - Cuban President Raul Castro is to travel to Venezuela Saturday, on his first trip abroad as head of state.

Raul Castro has not travelled abroad since he "temporarily" took over power from his brother Fidel in July 2006 and officially became head of state in February. He was then to travel on to Brazil, where he was to attend a summit of Latin American and Caribbean countries Tuesday and Wednesday in the north-eastern state of Bahia.

CARACAS, Venezuela, Nov. 27 -- The presidents of Russia and Venezuela have signed bilateral agreements, including construction of a nuclear power plant in the South American country.

The BBC reported the two leaders signed the nuclear power agreement Wednesday night.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin said President Dmitry Medvedev, the first Russian head of state to visit Caracas in 150 years, and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez signed a 25-year plan to cooperate with oil, gas and power generation, RIA Novosti reported Thursday.

Washington  - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice dismissed suggestions Wednesday that Russian naval exercises in the Caribbean Sea posed a threat to the US military hegemony in the Western Hemisphere.

"I just don't think there's any question about who has the preponderance of power in the Western Hemisphere," Rice said.

Two Russian warships, a destroyer and a cruiser along with support vessels, arrived in Venezuela on Tuesday to carry out joint naval exercises next week. They are the first Russian naval activities in the Western Hemisphere since the end of the Cold War.