Iranian deputy FM planning to visit 3 Latin American countries

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for European and American Affairs Majid Takht Ravanchi plans to pay a three-leg tour of Latin America in the next few days. Takht Ravanchi announced on Sunday that he is to visit Cuba, Venezuela and Bolivia to hold talks with officials of those countries to pave the way for boosting ties, the Islamic republic news agency reported. He said his Latin American tour will last for ten days focusing on various political and economic issues including Iran's peaceful nuclear program. In mid-December, a conference on economic and trade cooperation between Iran and Latin America opened in Tehran. Participants in the conference titled Challenges Facing Iran-Latin America Cooperation reviewed impediments to the expansion of economic cooperation between Iran and Latin America, specially Venezuela. Heads of oil and gas products exporting companies as well as a number of economic and energy experts were present in the conference. The conference was initiated by the Venezuelan embassy in Iran and the Latin American country’s Ambassador to Tehran, Amenhotep Zambrano, delivered the opening speech. Iran has in recent years expanded friendly ties with Latin America, specially in economic, trade and industrial fields. Iran's strong and rapidly growing ties with Latin America, specially with Venezuela, have raised eyebrows in the US and its western allies since Tehran and Latin nations have forged an alliance against the imperialist and colonialist powers and are striving hard to reinvigorate their relations with the other independent countries which pursue a line of policy independent from the US.