President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad pays his respects to his old
friend, Hugo
Chavez, by kissing his casket, at the funeral for the Venezuelan
president.
Ahmadinejad: 'Death
of Chavez will Not Harm Venezuela Ties' (Kayhan,
Islamic Republic of Iran)
Were Iran's
relations with Venezuela based on more than a personal relationship between
Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Hugo Chavez, who dies last week of
cancer? Seeking to dispel any such notion, this news item from Iran's state-run
Kayhan quotes Ahmadinejad and his vice president as
insisting that such relations are based on 'anti-imperialism' - and not
personalities.
Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad comforts the mother of Hugo Chavez, Elena Frias, alongside the flag-draped coffin of her son, Mar. 8. Ahmadinejad came under fire from Iran clerics, not only for publicly showing such affection toward a female, but for saying Chavez would be resurrected with Christ and the Mahdi.
TEHRAN: The passing of President Hugo Chavez will not
undermine relations between Tehran and Latin American countries, President
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said after returning from a two-day visit to Venezuela,
where he attended the funeral of President Hugo Chavez.
"The Iranian nation has strong bonds with other
revolutionary nations and … no one should think a vacuum will emerge in relations
due to the death of Chavez," the Iranian president said.
The Iranian government declared a national day of mourning last
Wednesday over the cancer-related death of the Venezuelan president. In
Caracas, Ahmadinejad, during a meeting with his Bolivian counterpart Evo Morales, lauded Latin America's campaign against
imperialism.
Ahmadinejad said that thanks to Hugo Chavez, Latin American
nations have awakened, and the dominance of imperialism has declined. And the president
said that the number of revolutionary leaders in the region rises by the day.
Bolivian President Evo Morales,
for his part, hailed the resistance of the Iranian nation to imperialism.
"Bolivia sees itself on the side of the Iranian nation, and in the
campaign against imperialism, extends its hand of solidarity. ... We should boost
cooperation and coordination against imperialism on a daily basis," Morales
said.
Ahmadinejad warned global imperialism that more leaders would
continue down the path of the late Venezuelan president. “Although the leaders
of imperialism may be pleased with the absence of Chavez, and imagine that a
void has opened up, their happiness will dissipate quickly, since there are
great men who will continue in Chavez' path,” he said.
Chavez died March 5 at the age of 58, after a two-year
battle with cancer.
He founded the movement of the Bolivarian Revolution to
establish popular democracy and economic independence, and to more equitably
distribute wealth in Latin America. Chavez was a key player in the progressive
movement that has swept Latin America.
Elsewhere in his remarks, Ahmadinejad called for the
strengthening of Iran-Bolivia ties in the path of progress and establishment of
global justice. “Iran is proud of the revolutionary leaders and resilient
peoples of Latin America.”
Meanwhile, Vice President Ali Saeedlou rejected Western
media reports that the death of the former Venezuelan president may adversely
affect Tehran-Caracas relations, calling them rank speculation.
The official noted that the people of Latin America have long
been dominated by imperialism, and with Chavez overseeing their struggle and
making its more objective, have fought for decolonization.
“It is wrong to say that our relations with Venezuela are
based on a personal relationship. The Islamic Republic of Iran maintains
deep-seated relations with all nations, particularly in Latin America,”
Saeedlou added.
Iran and Venezuela have forged strong economic and political
ties in the recent years.
Leaders of some Latin American countries have in recent
years built up diplomatic and trade ties with Iran, while their relations with
the United States have been greatly reduced amid popular demands for an end to
dependence on Washington.
