There's no reason to think that LC is anything more than a footnote to what is going on at the national level between the countries.

Fen...I think Las Cristinas is more than a footnote. It has been Chavez's favorite political football for quite awhile...with numerous disguised public references quoted in the "press". I think the massive Las Cristinas gold deposit is very visible on the Venezuelan radar.

By it's words and actions, Venezuela has demonstrated that gold is a strategic asset. One of Venezuela's biggest problems is inflation of its' currrency. Accumulation of gold reserves by the central bank offers some relief to this problem. Maybe these knuckleheads are finally realizing that the gold won't dig itself out of the ground.