Iranian President Khatami arrives in Venezuela on 3-day visit
Petroleumworld.com 03 11 05
petroleumworld.com
Iranian President Mohammad Khatami arrived late Thursday in Caracas on a three-day official visit in which he will sign a series of energy accords with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
Venezuelan Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel met Khatami at Maiquetia International airport, north of the capital. Chavez had not yet returned from France, his final stop on a tour that included India and Qatar.
The visit will be Khatami's third to Caracas, and coincides with record highs in petroleum prices worldwide.
Both Iran and Venezuela, one of the United States' principle sources of foreign oil, are founding members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
A further point of mutual interest is heightened tensions with Washington in recent months, with Iran the object of US ire over its suspected nuclear ambitions and Chavez accusing the United States of conspiring to mount an assassination attempt against him.
Venezuela's ambassador to Iran, Arturo Gallegos, told state television channel VTV that Chavez and Khatami will sign 20 accords during the visit, including for the construction of a tractor factory and for residential housing, and an agreement between the two nations' central banks.
Thursday night, Khatami will meet privately with representatives of the Iranian community in Venezuela, and early Friday will meet Chavez at the Miraflores presidential palace where the accords will be signed.
Later Friday, Khatami will give a speech to Venezuela's National Assembly, followed by a state dinner hosted by Chavez.
On Saturday, both leaders will travel to Ciudad Guyana, 500 kilometers (310 miles) southeast of Caracas, where they will inaugurate a tractor assembly plant.
The government has boosted relations with Iran since Chavez came to power in February 1999.
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