JOURNALfor the STUDYof ANTISEMITISM

54 JOURNAL FOR THE STUDY OF ANTISEMITISM [ VOL. 3:51
alarm to the existing preoccupation with the noticeable Iranian presence in
the zone. The Israeli academic Ely Karmon has been a pioneer in documenting
the strong ties of the Islamic Republic of Iran with Latin America.
Although Iran and the region enjoyed previous cordial relations, it was from
the ascent of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power that these bonds were
strengthened, especially with countries that conform to the armor-piercing
core of populism and of anti-occidentalism—but not only with them. As of
2005, Iranian foreign policy favors a regional approach to Latin America,
expanding from the bilateral. In his article “The Mideast Axis of
Destabilization,” Karmon talks about the bond between “Tehran and
Damascus” and cites its agenda: propagating Shi’ism (the Wayuu tribe in
Venezuela and the Totxiles in Mexico were recruited), extending the operational
base of Hizbullah (from the Opposite Triple toward Bolivia, Venezuela,
Brazil, and other places); gaining diplomatic support in international
forums for its illicit nuclear program (e.g., some Latin American nations
have abstained or favored Iranian interests in UN votes); obtaining uranium,
an essential raw material for its nuclear development (in May of 2009, The
New York Times reproduced an Associated Press cable referring to Israeli
denunciation of the provision of uranium from La Paz and Caracas to Iran);
limiting the impact of worldwide economic sanctions when creating an
alternative market (as it can be assessed from the multiple joint ventures
between Iran and several countries of the region); and, generally, erecting a
counterbalance to the United States—i.e., installing troops in border countries
of Iran in a zone in retaliation for U.S. presence in the Middle East.
Forums, congresses, and conferences have been focus points for the interrelation.
Thus, the 2007 International Conference on Latin America in
Tehran, titled “Development in Latin America: Its paper and its status in the
future international system,” counted on the participation of Argentina, Brazil,
Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Uruguay, and Venezuela (two children of
Ernesto “Che” Guevara were invited). The same year the conference took
place, the International Conference of Latin American Literature was held
in Iran, in which the Iranian chancellor announced the opening or re-opening
of Iranian embassies in several Latin American nations. In 2009, the
forum was realized via the International Forum for Resistance, Anti-Imperialism,
Solidarity between Peoples and Alternatives, which was held in January
2009.
The event, organized by Hizbullah, included four hundred Latin American
delegates. The forum may have been inspired by anti-globalization
assemblies held in Jakarta, Bombay, Beirut, and Porto Alegre between 2003
and 2005; 2005 marks the first time that Hizbullah was invited to a meeting
of this type. The Iranian president has also visited Venezuela, Bolivia, Nic-