Business Week:
When Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva defends Iran’s right to a nuclear program and makes plans to visit Tehran in May, he is following the path of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. The similarities only go so far.
Chavez, who has visited Iran eight times, is supporting the Islamic Republic and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad because he views the Iranian leader as a fellow “gladiator of the anti- imperialist battle” against the U.S.
Lula’s motivation is less ideological than strategic, say analysts in Brazil and the U.S. His policy is aimed at converting Brazil’s economic muscle into global clout by pushing “south-south” trade and political ties with developing countries, they say. Iran’s 74 million consumers make it an attractive market, and Lula’s resistance to Iran sanctions helps safeguard Brazil’s civilian nuclear program from outside interference.
This is not a surprise coming from the same man who has actually
supported Castro's "justice system" after the murder of opposition activist Orlando Zapata Tamayo.
