Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi pledged to confront the United States and its “aggressive imperial policy” alongside the communist Castro regime’s figurehead President Miguel Díaz-Canel and former Cuban dictator Raúl Castro during his trip to Havana on Thursday.
Cuba was the third and final destination in Raisi’s first Latin American tour that saw him travel to Iran’s other two authoritarian allies in Latin America, holding meetings with Venezuela’s socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro and Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega.
📸| El presidente de la República de #Cuba, @DiazCanelB, recibe en el Palacio de la Revolución al presidente de la República Islámica de #Irán, Excmo. Dr. Ayatollah Seyed Ebrahim Raisi, quien realiza una visita oficial a nuestro país.
— Cancillería de Cuba (@CubaMINREX) June 15, 2023
During his encounter with Díaz-Canel, Raisi claimed that both regimes have important interests in common, including the “struggle for independence and preserving their revolutionary positions.”
“Iran is willing to cooperate with all countries, but if a country acts against the interests of our nation, we stand up to it,” he said.
On the matter of U.S. sanctions on the Islamic regime, Raisi said that Iran considers broad and close relations with independent countries as one of the “effective ways to deal with sanctions.”
The Iranian president concluded by asserting that the United States and the “hegemonic powers” can do nothing against independent nations.
“Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, leader of the Cuban Revolution, received the Iranian President, His Excellency Dr. Ayatollah Seyed Ebrahim Raisi, who is on an official visit to our country.” (via Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cuba/Twitter)
“Our cooperation on the road to progress can create hope in independent nations and despair in hegemonic powers,” Raisi asserted.
Díaz-Canel stated that it is an “honor” and a “great satisfaction” to receive Raisi in Cuba, who he described as a “dear friend.” The Castro regime’s figurehead emphasized the significance of Raisi’s visit to Cuba as proof of the existence of common values.
“You have visited three Latin American countries that have a significant relationship with Iran’s Revolution, Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Cuba,” Díaz-Canel said. “These nations, together with Iran, have had to heroically confront, with tenacious resistance, the sanctions, pressures, threats, blockades and interference of Yankee imperialism and its allies.”
“This visit reinforced our conviction that we have in Iran a friendly nation in the Middle East, with which to confide and talk about the most complex global issues,” he added.
“The conditions and circumstances in which Cuba and Iran find themselves today have many things in common,” Raisi responded to Diaz-Canel. “Every day our relations grow stronger.”
“The President @DiazCanelB held official talks with Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi, president of the Islamic Republic of #Irán. They confirmed the existence of opportunities to strengthen cooperation and promote economic and trade ties in sectors of common interest.” (via Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cuba/Twitter)
Granma, the Communist Party of Cuba’s official newspaper, reported on Thursday that former dictator Raúl Castro met with Raisi in an “atmosphere of friendship and respect, typical of the ties that both countries have maintained for more than 40 years.”
Castro, 91, brother to late murderous dictator Fidel — who was recently plucked out of retirement by the ailing communist regime and is now serving as a lawmaker — thanked Raisi for Iran’s support in Cuba’s fight against the U.S. “embargo,” adding that the “cordial” exchange reaffirmed the willingness of Cuba and Iran to continue strengthening relations of friendship and cooperation, as well as high-level political dialogue.
Both Iran and Cuba are on the United States’ list of state sponsors of terrorism.
Raisi and his delegation signed six cooperation agreements with the Castro regime in the fields of judicial cooperation, political cooperation, customs cooperation, and information technology. The regimes also agreed to strengthen their economic ties during an event held with businessmen from both countries, particularly in the fields of biotechnology, mining, and electrical generation.
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Raisi’s visit to Cuba and the signing of new agreements between the Islamic republic and the communist Castro regime occurs at a time when the Cuban government, which has brought Cuba to near ruin after more than six decades of communist rule, is seeking the aid of global allies to overcome myriad of communist-made problems it has failed to properly solve.
Cuba’s Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz traveled to Russia this week to meet with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. Following their encounter, Russian media reported that the country is ready to supply Cuba with 1.64 tonnes of oil and oil products annually to help it address severe gasoline shortages.
Recent reports indicate that Cuba has also allowed China to build — or may already have built — an intelligence facility on Cuban soil that China can use to spy on the United States. Both Beijing and Havana have denied the reports.
Raisi departed Cuba back to Tehran on late Thursday evening, concluding his Latin American tour. Iranian state news agency IRNA reported that Raisi and his delegation signed 28 cooperation agreements with Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Cuba.
Christian K. Caruzo is a Venezuelan writer and documents life under socialism. You can follow him on Twitter here.