Iran Courts Latin America

CNN - Iranian, Nicaraguan leaders meet, vow to work together

Ahmadinejad was in Managua as part of a whirlwind series of meetings with Latin America's newly inaugurated leftist leaders.

He visited fellow OPEC member Venezuela on Saturday, vowing with President Hugo Chavez to spend billions of dollars financing projects in other countries to combat the global influence of their common enemy, the United States.
. . .
On Monday, the Iranian leader will attend the inauguration of Ecuador's new president, Rafael Correa, and meet with Bolivian President Evo Morales. Both are both outspoken critics of the Bush administration's policies in Latin America.

I'm not quite sure what Ahmadinejad is hoping to accomplish here. I guess the idea is to make people nervous that they are "in our own backyard" like during the Cold War days. It never really worked out too well back then, now did it.

I did find this statement in the article rather interesting:

Ortega, however, did not match Ahmadinejad's confrontational rhetoric in his remarks Sunday.

The Nicaraguan president instead focused on how Iran and Nicaragua should work to help the developing world.

He spoke of "constructive agreements to combat hunger, unemployment and poverty."

While pledging close ties with Ahmadinejad, Ortega has tried to start his new government on a cordial note with the U.S. government.

Who would have thought that Daniel Ortega would be a voice of moderation in Latin America?