Americas

Americas

Iran leader lands in Cuba flashing victory sign

11 January 2012 23:20 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived Wednesday in Cuba for talks with his counterpart Raul Castro as the Islamic Republic blamed Israel and the United States for the killing of a nuclear scientist in a Tehran car bombing, APA reports quoting AFP.

The scientist’s killing heightened already high tensions with the West over Iran’s suspect nuclear program but a defiant Ahmadinejad flashed the victory sign several times after landing in Havana.

The Iranian leader was greeted by nine girls in traditional Iranian attire as he stepped off the plane that flew him in from Nicaragua on the third leg of his Latin American tour.

Ahmadinejad, who was welcomed by Cuban Vice President Estaban Lazo, did not speak to the media.

"The distinguished visitor will have talks with President Raul Castro and will have other activities," the official daily Granma said in a terse announcement.

Ahmadinejad’s arrival came hours after Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, a 32-year-old nuclear scientist, was killed in Tehran.

Iran pointed the finger at Israel and the United States, which have vowed to prevent Iran from building a nuclear weapon.

Iran’s Vice President Mohammad Reza Rahimi told state television the killing, which occurred in front of a university campus in east Tehran, would not stop Iran making "progress" in its nuclear activities.

Iranian officials said the assassination method -- two men on a motorbike attaching a magnetic bomb to the target’s vehicle -- was similar to that used in the killings of three other of its scientists over the past two years.

Washington denied any involvement in the killing.

"The United States had absolutely nothing to do with this. We strongly condemn all acts of violence, including acts of violence like this," said National Security Council spokesman Tommy Vietor.

The killing following Monday’s confirmation by the UN nuclear watchdog IAEA that Iran had begun enriching uranium in a new, underground bunker, a development that the United States, Britain, France and Germany denounced as an unacceptable violation of UN Security Council resolutions.

Faced with growing pressure from the West over his country’s nuclear ambitions, Ahmadinejad has been seeking support from four Latin American countries hostile to Washington.

During a visit lasting less than 24 hours, Ahmadinejad was also to deliver a speech at Havana University, according to the official program.

Iranian media have suggested that he could also meet ailing Fidel Castro, the 85-year-old former president and revolutionary icon, but there was no confirmation from the Cuban side.

The former president, who frequently slammed the United States, Europe and Israel for their hostile stance toward Tehran, had received Ahmadinejad in 2006, soon after turning over power to his brother Raul, during a nonaligned summit in Havana.

Communist-ruled Cuba and the Islamic Republic, political allies mainly when dealing with Washington, share similar positions in international organizations, with Tehran condemning the half-century US trade embargo against Cuba and Havana recognizing Iran’s right to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

The two countries have pledged to boost cooperation and bilateral trade, which fell from $46.4 million in 2008 to $27 million in 2009, the most recent official data published.

Tehran insists that its nuclear program has no military purposes, rejecting Western charges that its uranium enrichment program masks a bid to covertly build a nuclear bomb.

Israel, Tehran’s sworn enemy, has threatened to launch air strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities. The United States has said "all options are on the table" in terms of dealing with Iran -- including military action.

Tehran has meanwhile threatened to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz at the entrance to the Gulf if it is attacked. Twenty percent of the world’s oil flows through the strait.

In Nicaragua, Ahmadinejad secured the backing Daniel Ortega, who insisted that "countries have the right to develop nuclear energy." He earlier enlisted the support of President Hugo Chavez during a stop in Venezuela.

The Iranian leader was to leave early Thursday for Ecuador, the last leg of a tour which began in Venezuela Sunday.