Mr Chavez will be the first elected head of state to meet Mr Saddam since the 1991 Gulf war. Iraq yesterday hailed the visit as a slap in the face for the United States.
Nobody can influence our decision.
Mr Chavez is expected to travel by land from Iran to avoid the UN-imposed air embargo. But the Americans accuse him of breaking political sanctions, and say that he did not seek advice from the UN sanctions committee before deciding on the visit. In Britain, Ann Clwyd MP, the chairwoman of Indict, the organisation which is seeking to prosecute leading members of the Iraqi regime, described the trip as a bad move. That's why it's important that the UN does set up a war-crimes tribunal and stops dragging its feet. He has already visited Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar.