(Times-UK) Hannah Strange - Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, received a hero's welcome in Caracas Wednesday as he visited his key Latin American ally on a regional tour designed to shore up support for Tehran in its confrontation with Western powers. Shouting "Viva Ahmadinejad!" Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez pledged his full backing for Iran. Iran is trying to deepen its strategic inroads on the Latin American continent, where it has found new allies in a host of anti-American leftist leaders led by Chavez. Tehran has opened five new diplomatic missions and signed hundreds of cooperation deals in the region, including some 200 with Venezuela in the areas of trade, energy and defense.
2009-11-26 08:10:41Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive