Iran Tracker

Nuclear:

In 2008, Argentina voted in favor of UN sanctions against Iran’s nuclear program. Deputy Foreign Minister Roberto Garcia Moritan explained the vote stating, "all countries must subject their nuclear facilities to IAEA monitoring and comply with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty." [1] Argentina states that it supports every country’s right to peaceful nuclear technology, as long as the country complies with   IAEA inspections.

Despite Argentina’s current objections to Iran’s nuclear program, in the 1980’s and 1990’s Argentina supplied Iran with nuclear materials, disregarding Washington’s protestations.  In 1992, these agreements faced disruption when the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires suffered a deadly terrorist attack which the Argentine government later blamed on Iranian-funded Hezbollah.[2]  Although this attack caused friction in bilateral relations between Argentina and Iran, the two countries continued to negotiate trade deals until a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires was bombed on July 18, 1994, leaving 85 dead. [3]  The Argentine government accused Iran of more directly supporting this attack and issued arrest warrants for several Iranian leaders.[4]  Since 1994, Argentina has been an outspoken critic of Iran’s nuclear program and all nuclear materials trade between the two countries has ceased.[5]

Economic Relationship:

Since the two terrorist attacks in Argentina in the 1990’s, trade relations between Argentina and Iran have suffered.  Trade did not cease entirely, however, and in February 2008, the Iranian Director General for Chamber of Cooperatives Mohammad Ramezani said that Iran was interested in broadening economic cooperation with Argentina.  He claimed that "various [Argentine] cooperatives in different businesses are now operating in Iran and we are encouraging them to enter the export markets which will have positive impacts on the country's revenue. We support export of non-oil commodities."[6]  Ramezani said Iran was also willing to share its experience in agriculture and fishing with Argentina.  In response, Argentine Charge d'Affaires Mario Quinteros said his country was interested in expanding bilateral trade with Iran.[7]

In November 2008, a number of Argentine papers reported that Iran would suspend its commercial trade with Iran due to differences in the investigation of the 1994 terrorist attack in Buenos Aires. The Argentine Ministry of Justice later claimed that it had never made the statement, but the ongoing investigation demonstrates that political differences are still hindering trade relations between the two countries.[8]  Despite differences, the two countries still have low-level relations, particularly in the energy sector, which was recently exemplified with Iran agreed to participate in the World Gas Forum October 5-9, 2009 in Argentina.[9] 

In late May 2009, Israeli news website Ynet obtained a detailed dossier drafted by the Israeli Foreign Ministry on Iran’s activities in South America.[10] The report, which is based on information gathered by military and diplomatic sources around the world, both Israeli and foreign, claimed that Iran had begun its infiltration of Latin America as early as 1982.[11] The Foreign Ministry report says, “Since Ahmadinejad’s rise to power, Tehran has been promoting an aggressive policy aimed at bolstering its ties with Latin American countries with the declared goal of ‘bringing America to its knees.’”[12] The report suggests that pro-American countries such as Guatemala, Honduras and the Dominican Republic, who receive aid from Venezuela – with regard to Venezuela and Iran’s common anti-‘American Imperialist’ interests – may also be subject to Iranian influence. The report added that even Argentina is steadily increasing its trade relations with Iran, in spite of Iran’s alleged involvement in the terror attacks on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires in 1992 and on the AMIA Jewish Community Center in the Argentinean capital in 1994.[13]

In December 2009, International Monetary Fund (IMF) data analyzed by the Latin Business Chronicle confirms that Iran-Latin American trade soared 209% in 2008, totally US$2.9 billion.[14] According to the IMF data, trade with Argentina totaled US$1.2 billion in 2008, a dramatic increase compared to the US$30 million from 2007.[15] Trade is favorable for Argentine exports and Iranian-Argentine business relations have continued to advance in spite of the diplomatic repercussions of the 1994 terrorist bombing of a Jewish institution in Buenos Aires, after which Argentina claimed that Iran was behind the attacks.[16]

Diplomatic/Military Cooperation:

As Iran has cultivated friendly relations with many of Argentina’s neighbors based on growing bilateral trade and public messages of support, Argentina has spoken out against Iran’s nuclear enrichment and has sanctioned Iranian-funded Hezbollah.  Argentina holds Hezbollah responsible for a 1992 attack on the Israeli embassy in Argentina that killed 29 people.[17] In response to the bombing, the Argentine government expelled several Iranian officials working in Argentina for alleged involvement in the attack. In 1994, Buenos Aires suffered another terrorist attack, this time on a Jewish community center.[18] Argentina accused Iran of having a role in the attack and later issued arrest warrants for several Iranian leaders, including then-Iranian President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.[19] In 2007, Iran summoned five Argentinean nationals to appear in court for orchestrating a scenario to implicate Iran in the attacks.[20]  One year later, in September 2008, Argentina called on Iran to extradite five former officials to stand trial for the ’94 bombings.[21] Interpol has called for the arrest of these suspects but no one has yet been convicted.

In January 2007, Ahmadinejad made an official visit to several of Argentina’s neighbors, including Ecuador, Nicaragua, and Venezuela; Argentina’s President Nestor Kirchner did not schedule to meet with the Iranian president.[22]  Kirchner even canceled his plans to attend Ecuadorian President Raphael Correa’s inauguration in January 2007 after Ahmadinejad announced plans to attend the ceremonies.[23]

In July 2009, Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman launched a ten-day tour of several Latin American countries. On the first day of a four-day visit to Argentina, Lieberman claimed that "Iran is the biggest sponsor of world terror organizations such as Hamas, (Islamic) Jihad and Hezbollah."[24] Referencing Iran’s alleged involvement in terrorist activities in Argentina, Lieberman added that "people must understand that when terrorism penetrates a country, it does not only target [one group] in particular, but damages the entire country." The foreign minister indicated that although Iran has been more successful in improving ties with Latin America, Israel will seek to be more “proactive” and “want[s] to develop economic relations with countries in the region.”[25]  In November 2009, Israeli President Shimon Peres visited Argentina in hopes of strengthening the Israel-Argentina relationship with specific focus on the two countries’ mutual worries of Iran’s influence in South America.[26]

In early March 2010, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton added an unplanned stop to Buenos Aires on her Latin American tour itinerary, during which, as she previously mentioned, “Iran is at the top of my agenda.”[27] Clinton and the U.S. delegation stayed in Argentina instead of Chile, where the government was still preoccupied with the aftermath of the devastating earthquake.[28] Initially, Clinton was schedule to hold a meeting with Argentinean President Cristina Kirchner while she was in Uruguay in the midst of the inauguration ceremony for Uruguayan president elect Jose Mujica;[29] however, in light of the change in her itinerary, Clinton met with Kirchner in Buenos Aires.[30]