The Venezuelan government has secured a loan of US$ 1 billion from Japan in order to further expand one if its oil refineries in the Northern state of Carabobo, as well as to finance oil related goods and services.
On Wednesday, Venezuela used its national airline, Conviasa, to send a plane filled with 25 tons of food and medical supplies to the city of Nagoya, 262 kilometers from Tokyo. The donation represents an unprecdented act of humanitarian aid in the history of Venezuela-Japan relations.
In the aftermath of last Friday’s tragic earthquake, president Hugo Chávez sent his condolences to the Japanese people and announced his decision to halt a bi-lateral nuclear development agreement signed between Venezuela and Russia in October of last year.
Venezuelan and Japanese officials met in Tokyo on Sunday and Monday to create mixed enterprises to exploit Venezuela's Orinoco Oil Belt. The officials also planned future economic collaboration in the areas of finance, infrastructure, agriculture, automobile production, and oil-based chemical products.
![Venezuela's state-owned airliner Conviasa [http://www.conviasa.aero/] flies both domestically and internationally (Archive)](http://venezuelanalysis.com/files/imagecache/medium/images/2011/03/conviasa.jpg)
