Iran’s President Ahmadinejad visits Cuba

Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in Cuba on Wednesday, the third stop on his tour of the Americas, for a one-day visit, Reuters reported.

Ahmadinejad was greeted by Esteban Lazo, one of Cuba’s vice presidents, and nine girls dressed in traditional Iranian attire, the AFP reported. Lazo and Ahmadinejad were driven away in a black Mercedes to a meeting with President Raul Castro. He is also expected to meet with Fidel Castro while on the island.

Ahmadinejad did not speak to the media when he arrived in Cuba.

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Ahmadinejad has already visited Venezuela and Nicaragua, promoting his friendships with allies in the Americas, after the United States imposed tougher sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program, the Associated Press reported. He’ll visit Ecuador next.

All four countries on Ahmadinejad’s agenda have political and economic ties with the Islamic Republic, which have continued to expand over the years, Reuters reported. They also all share the same antipathy towards the US and have endorsed Iran’s nuclear program.

On Monday, when Ahmadinejad was visiting Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez, they joked about having an atomic bomb at their disposal, Reuters reported.

He arrived in Cuba just hours after an Iranian scientist, Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, was killed in a Tehran car bombing, which Iran has blamed on the US and Israel, the AFP reported. Iranian Vice President Mohammad Reza Rahimi made a statement on state television after the killing, saying it would not stop Iran’s “progress” in its nuclear activities.

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