Tuesday, May 17, 2005

This is from Bill Gertz's "Backgrounder" at Geostrategy-Direct.com:

Growing strategic ties between Iran and Venezuela concern U.S. intelligence

U.S. intelligence officials are worried by growing ties between the leftist government of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela and Iran's Islamist regime.

Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi met recently with Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jesus Arnaldo Perez and discussed "U.S. threats," officials said.

The two ministers also declared their common interests in the Americas and the Middle East.

Perez called Iran a "strategic ally" and thanked Teheran for supporting the Chavez government. He also said Iran's "resistance against foreign powers" is an example for Venezuela.


Gertz writes for The Washington Times and wrote the Regnery bestseller Betrayal: How the Clinton Administration Undermined American Security; his current publisher is Crown Forum, which also publishes Ann Coulter.

So I assume what we're getting here is an unclassified version of John Bolton's last memo or a preview of Dick Cheney's next speech. Or both.

A quick Google News search does find disturbing evidence of ties between the two countries:

Venezuelan minister of Nutrition and Food Stuffs said here Sunday that Iran's progress in industry specially the food sector is "impressive."

Rafael Jose Oropeza and his accompanying delegation visited the Iran Food Research and Production Company in 'Savajboulagh' near Tehran....

He said that Caracas and Tehran have signed several agreements in the food sector. Some of the Iran Food Research and Production company's output is exported.

Several agreements worth a total of over one billion dollars were signed between Iran and Venezuela in March.

Also, Iran and Venezuela have invested dlrs 34 million in setting up a tractor manufacturing plant. Iran holds a 51 percent stake in the venture...


Food and tractors? That's it. That's the smoking gun. Nuke 'em both.

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