Iran's Raisi begins 5-day trip to visit Venezuela, Nicaragua and Cuba
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According to the Iranian President, this visit is a pivotal point in developing Tehran’s ties with all three countries he is visiting.
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Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi (right) and his Venezuelan counterpart Nicolas Maduro shake hands at the Saadabad Palace in Tehran, Iran in June 2022. (AP)
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has left Iran to embark on a tour of three Latin American countries - Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Cuba.
During a short interview on Monday ahead of his five-day tour, Raisi said that his country's relations with those nations have been consistently friendly, especially taking into consideration the common views with Tehran on international issues.
“Our common position with these three countries is opposition to the [world’s] hegemonic system and unilateralism,” the president said, adding that Iran cooperates with those countries in numerous areas.
“Export of technical and engineering manpower is among our important cooperation areas,” he said, adding, “We also cooperate with Latin American countries in the fields of politics, energy, science and technology, medicine, and economy.”
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According to Raisi, he is visiting after an invitation from the presidents of the three countries, stressing that this visit is a pivotal point in developing Tehran’s ties with them. Additionally, the president highlighted the opportunities present in Iran and the three countries that can expand and broaden their "strategic relations."
This is considered Raisi's 13th foreign trip during the course of almost two years since being elected as Iran's president.
Alongside Raisi is a high-ranking delegation consisting of ministers of foreign affairs, oil, defense, and health while cooperation agreements and memorandums of understanding are due to be signed on the trip.
Iran and Venezuela both signed a 20-year partnership agreement last June to bolster bilateral cooperation in various fields during Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's visit to Tehran.
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The partnership agreement includes cooperation in science, technology, agriculture, oil and gas, petrochemicals, tourism, and culture.
The last time an Iranian official made a visit to Latin America was back in February when Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian made an official visit to Nicaragua and Venezuela.
