With Iranian nuclear aspirations gaining notice, it's worth directing attention to the growing relationship between Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez. The Reagan administration repulsed Soviet efforts to set up camp in Central America. Iranian designs on Venezuela perhaps deserve similar U.S. attention.
The warmth and moral support between Ahmadinejad and Chávez is very public. The two tyrants are a lot more than just pen pals. Venezuela has made it clear that it backs Iran's nuclear ambitions and embraces the mullahs' hateful anti-Semitism. What remains more speculative is just how far along Iran is in putting down roots in Venezuela.
I've noted this before as well. Hugo Chavez was once just a harmless (to us) crank and a threat only to his own people. He was, as I called him, a member of the Axis of El Vil. We had bigger worries to address than some tinpot lunatic with delusions of grandeur and recycled Marxist sloganeering.
As Chavez has gone more bonkers, I've wondered when he will get promoted to Axis of Evil status and require our serious attention.
And now we may be at that point. It would have been nice to have stopped this lunatic years ago but our resources are limited and I don't know how we could have done it without diverting resources from more immediate threats.
The question is why is Chavez trying to become a threat to America?
I mean, I can see why Iran likes this arrangement. Trying to create a closer target for America might keep us from dealing with Iran long enough for Tehran to go nuclear.
But why would Chavez go along? What is possibly in it for him?
We need a public campaign to support the democrats in Venezuela so they can resist Chavez's slow campaign to destroy freedom in Venezuela. We can't afford to spare the effort to deal with Venezuela more forcefully even if it is a good thing to do. And we can't afford to let Venezuela become a Cuba-Iran hybrid dedicated to harming us and their neighbors.
And as we continue to focus on Iran instead of being diverted by Chavez, what else will Iran give to Chavez to make us notice Venezuela and tempt us to deal with the closer threat before we get to Iran?
Like we haven't enough to worry about.
UPDATE: Watchman at Vital Perspectives has written that Iran is seeking a wider alliance in Latin America: "A dangerous alliance is emerging between Iran, Cuba, Venezuela, and Bolivia. Iranian President Ahmadinejad recently spoke with the leaders of all three Latin countries in efforts to strengthen diplomatic and strategic ties. " Wonderful. Although I like to think that the Bolivians aren't necessarily a lost cause.
I would like to add a speculation and a comment. On speculation, is this a sign that Iran doesn't think its Syrian alliance to resist us in Iraq can hold us off long enough?
As a comment, Iran's alliance-building move is another example of the truism that if you give an enemy time, they just might use it. Iran is using the time the Europeans have provided them with pointless negotiations over a matter the Iranians never intended to negotiate away--their eventual possession of nuclear weapons.
