US "threatened" by Iran's Relationship with Latin America

Steven Stanek
The National
October 29, 2009

Iran has moved to substantially increase its diplomatic, trade and military ties to countries in South America, posing a new challenge to US authority in the Western Hemisphere, a group of experts told a joint congressional subcommittee on Tuesday.

The westward expansion has helped Iran blunt the effect of US and UN sanctions, several witnesses told members of the House foreign affairs committee. Some said the developments pose a direct security threat to the United States.

“By developing close regional ties, Iran has the ability to leapfrog its international isolation, while making common cause with others who have self-identified as opposing the United States and other western nations,” said Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the Council of the Americas, who testified at the hearings. “At the very least, these are issues that should be watched with a careful, wary eye.”

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