According to Khabar Online's political desk, Ahmadinejad first headed to Bolivia, midway to Brazil, where he was warmly received by his Bolivian counterpart President Evo Morales on Tuesday. They next went to the Palacio Quemado presidential palace to discuss on regional and international issues as well as cooperation between Iran and Bolivia.
Morales, as well as Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, the three anti-U.S. leaders in the South American region enjoy warm ties with Ahmadinejad.
In a speech alongside Morales, Iran's president stated: "The long age of colonial exploitation is the result of the attitude and actions of greedy governments and states that want to stop others from developing, and from exercising freedom," AFP reported.
Currently in Rio de Janeiro, as well as attending Rio+20, Ahmadinejad is negotiating and taking steps to boost Iran-Brazil political and economic relations. The global environmental summit is a 10-day Conference on Sustainable Development, the 20-year follow-up to the 1992 Earth Summit that is a landmark in environmentalism.
However, one of the significant parts of Ahmadinejad's travel would be his visit to Venezuela for seeing Hugo Chavez, his main ally in southern America region. The visit was earlier scheduled to be made eight months ago following Ahmadinejad's travel to New York where he attended the 66th General Assembly of the United Nations.
The visit was canceled due to the bad health condition of Chavez who is suffering from cancer. The last travel of Ahmadinejad to Venezuela took place more than two years ago when he was welcomed by Chavez who titled him, "The Gladiator of Anti-Imperialist War."
Three months later, Ahmadinejad went on another diplomatic tour to Latin America where he met Chavez who was passing a period of convalescence after tolerating chemotherapy. At a joint news conference in Caracas to two presidents declared that they have formed a popular-humane front.
The exchanges between Latin American countries and Iran which have turned to a significant and strategic relation, was first promoted by the government of former president Mohammad Khatami. It was at that time that Khatami paid visits to some countries of that region and various deals were signed between Iran and those countries.
But when Ahmadinejad took office as president, the relations expanded more rapidly. Many Iranian statesmen believe that pursuing the current method of boosting ties with Latin American countries is a very positive and defendable act.
Under Ahmadinejad, Iran has expanded its economic, political and military influence in Latin America, taking advantage of an up swell of anti-American sentiment in the region led by Chavez and his eight-nation Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas.
Nonetheless, Ahmadinejad has yet to fulfill some pledges made on previous trips such as building a port in Nicaragua and an oil refinery in Ecuador.
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