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By ALI AKBAR DAREINI
The Associated Press
Wednesday, October 20, 2010; 9:21 PM TEHRAN, Iran -- The leaders of Iran and Venezuela hailed what they
called their strong strategic relationship on Wednesday, saying they are
united in efforts to establish a "new world order" that will eliminate
Western dominance over global affairs.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and visiting Venezuelan
counterpart, Hugo Chavez, watched as officials from both countries
signed 11 agreements promoting cooperation in areas including oil,
natural gas, textiles, trade and public housing. Among the agreements, Venezuela's state oil company Petroleos de
Venezuela SA said the South American country was forming a joint
shipping venture with Iran to aid in delivering Venezuelan crude oil to
Europe and Asia. It said in a statement that the agreement for a joint
venture also would help supply Iran "due to its limited refining capacity." Both presidents denounced U.S. "imperialism" and said their opponents
will not be able to impede cooperation between Iran and Venezuela. Iran's state TV quoted both Ahmadinejad and Chavez as calling their
relationship a "strategic alliance" that would eliminate the current
global order. "Iran and Venezuela are united to establish a new world order based on
humanity and justice," Ahmadinejad said, repeating his predictions that
those who today seek "world domination are on the verge of collapse." Chavez said this is a time of "great threats" that make its necessary to
swiftly "consolidate strategic alliances in political, economic,
technological, energy and social areas," according to the state-run
Venezuelan News Agency. Details of the latest accords were not released, and Chavez said some
agreements went beyond those put on paper. He said a Venezuelan
delegation will soon travel to Iran to follow up on the agreements. Iran has become the closest Middle East ally to Chavez's government as
the left-leaning leader has sought to build international alliances to
counter what he sees as U.S. economic and political dominance. "Imperialism has entered a decisive phase of decline and ... is headed,
like elephants, to its graveyard," Chavez said, according to the
Venezuelan state news agency. Chavez has staunchly defended Iran's nuclear energy program, siding with
Tehran by insisting it is for peaceful uses and not for nuclear bombs. U.S. officials have worried Iran may be using its civilian nuclear
program as a cover to develop atomic weapons. Four rounds of U.N.
sanctions, as well as broader severe U.S. and European Union sanctions
have not persuaded Tehran to halt the program. Chavez also has plans to develop a nuclear energy program in Venezuela
and last week signed an agreement for Russia to help build a reactor. Without mentioning the countries' nuclear ambitions, Chavez said his
government demands respect for Iran's sovereignty and that "those who
think they are most powerful and want to impose their will on the world
respect Iran." Chavez's trip to Iran was his ninth as president. Before coming to
Tehran, he made stops in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. Later Wednesday,
Chavez arrived in Syria, and is due to travel next to Libya and Portugal. Iran and Venezuela both belong to the Organization of the Petroleum
Exporting Countries. In recent years, the two oil-producing countries
have also set up joint ventures to produce cars, tractors and bicycles
in the South American country. --- Associated Press Writer Ian James in Caracas, Venezuela, contributed to
this report.
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