Brazil's Lula asks Bush not to stop aid to Bolivia, Ecuador
Visiting Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Thursday that he asked his U.S counterpart George W. Bush not to sever aid to Bolivia and Ecuador.

Lula warned Bush that stopping aid "would be problematic" for the two South American countries as both of them are poor and receive little money from abroad.

Lula said he discussed the issue with Bush at the Camp David presidential retreat in Maryland.

"We cannot fight deficiencies without economic growth and income distribution" in the region's countries, said Lula.

It is necessary to facilitate relations with those countries, as "each country must have the facilities" necessary to reach their goals, he said.

Lula praised his Bolivian counterpart Evo Morales, who took office in January last year, saying "it is extraordinary that Bolivia has chosen a President like Evo Morales," since "nobody has Bolivia's face like Evo."

Lula supported Morales' decision to nationalize the country's gas resources but asked for "a fair price for those countries thatwant to buy it."

"I have talked a lot with Evo" about the issue of gas nationalization, the Brazilian president added.