Chavez: Iran fanned revolutionary hope

 
Source: Press TV,10-02-2009

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez says Caracas shares "the ideals of independence and sovereignty" of the Islamic Revolution of Iran.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, Caracas suggested that the Islamic Revolution has been a source of inspiration for countries with "revolutionary hopes".

"We joyfully celebrate the memorable, popular uprising against the Shah in February 1979, a historic date ... in fanning the revolutionary hopes of all the people of the world struggling for emancipation," a statement by the Venezuelan Foreign Ministry quoted Chavez as saying.
The congratulatory message by Chavez comes on the 30th anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution, which ended the dictatorship of the US-backed shah.

President Chavez "feels honored to share with [Iran's] Islamic Revolution its ideals of independence and sovereignty, fundamental values in consolidating a multipolar world within the context of an open dialogue between cultures," the statement continued.

Iran and Venezuela, both members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), have developed close relations over the past several years, signing some 30 cooperation agreements on mutual economic development, particularly in the oil sector.

Chavez has made five official visits to Iran since he came to power in 1998; the level of trade between the two nations stands at $2.5 billion.
The increasing level of interaction between Iran and Latin America has raised concerns in the United States, where officials say that such ties sabotage Washington efforts to isolate the Middle Eastern country.

Venezuela and Iran have both been subject to US efforts to sabotage democracy, prompting Chavez and his Iranian counterpart, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to become outspoken critics of interventionist US policies.